Although Canada has not yet put a tariff on American corn, some worry if it will be included in the next round of retaliatory tariffs.
The country is laying out all options. Some of South Dakota’s top exports to Canada are on the chopping block.
In 2023, South Dakota’s top agriculture and agri-food export market was Canada, making up 47% of the state’s exports.
DaNita Murray is the Executive Director for the South Dakota Corn Utilization Council. She said even though South Dakota hasn’t been sending as much corn to Canada as in the past, another state export could be hurt by potential retaliatory tariffs.
“Certainly ethanol has been moving north. While I believe technically the status the tariff negotiations the Trump administration is working on right now has not resulted, to my knowledge, on a direct tariff on corn or our valued added products like ethanol, I believe both corn and ethanol are on kind of what you might call ‘Round 2,’ the Round 2 retaliatory tariff list for Canada,” Murray said.
She said they’re monitoring Trump’s negotiations, because there is a possibility retaliatory tariffs could hit corn and ethanol markets next.
Canada posted a Notice of Intent to Impose Countermeasures against the US’s tariffs on Canadian goods. The Canadian government is currently taking input from businesses, stakeholders and Canadian citizens on what’s the most beneficial next move.
Canada said if President Trump doesn’t remove tariffs, it plans to respond with its own 25% tariff on $125 billion worth of US goods.
Some of South Dakota’s biggest exports to Canada are on the list, which has over 4,000 possibilities.
Of those include grain alcohol, oilcakes, dog and cat food, soybean oil and corn. Those are the state’s top exports to Canada and together made $550 million for South Dakota in 2023.
Canadian public comment on the matter ends April 2.
