Tomatoes become latest flashpoint in US-Mexico trade tensions

Tomatoes, found in everything from tacos to soups, are suddenly at the center of a new cost concern, not because of crop failure, but because of tariffs. The Trump administration’s plan to impose steep levies on fresh Mexico-grown tomatoes, which supply most of the U.S. market, could drive up prices for restaurants, grocers, and families alike.

On April 14, the Commerce Department announced it would begin imposing a 20.91% tariff on most tomatoes imported from Mexico starting July 14. The decision ends a 2019 agreement that had suspended earlier trade penalties, with officials arguing the pact failed to protect American producers from a competition surge from low-cost Mexican tomatoes.

“The current agreement has failed to protect U.S. tomato growers from unfairly priced Mexican imports, as Commerce has been flooded with comments from them urging its termination,” the department said in a release. “This action will allow U.S. tomato growers to compete fairly in the marketplace.”

Nearly nine out of 10 tomatoes imported into the United States last year came from Mexico, according to trade figures from the U.S. Census Bureau. Canada, the second-largest supplier, accounted for just 13%, a distant runner-up in a market dominated by its southern neighbor.

Tomatoes, although technically a fruit, are one of the most widely consumed vegetables in the country, with 31.4 pounds per person, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

U.S. tomato growers once dominated the market, supplying 80% in 1994. Today, Mexico controls over 65% of the market, and the U.S. share has dropped to just above 30%, according to the Florida Tomato Exchange. Meanwhile, Florida and California together account for more than two-thirds of the nation’s fresh-tomato acreage.

“Unless we even the playing field in terms of fair pricing, you’re not going to have a domestic industry for fresh tomatoes in the very near future,” Robert Guenther, the Florida Tomato Exchange’s executive vice president, said in an interview with the Associated Press.

Mexico is seeking to negotiate the new tariff on its tomato exports, which was imposed over allegations of dumping. In response, the Mexican government has pointed out that it, too, has active trade cases accusing the United States of selling chicken and pork legs in Mexico at unfairly low prices.

“There is no substitute for Mexican tomatoes in the U.S., except perhaps a small percentage that comes mainly from Florida. But the volume of tomatoes exported to the U.S. cannot be replaced by any other source,” President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico, said during her morning press conference in April.

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