US Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing Sector NAICS 11

May 16, 2025 - Seafood Tariffs Cut Both Ways

• Tariffs on imported seafood would cause prices to rise, making US products more competitive in a market dominated by lower priced imports, Aquaculture North America reports. The US is a net importer of fish and seafood, with imports accounting for more than 79% of the seafood Americans consumed in 2020, according to NOAA Fisheries. The value of seafood imports exceeded exports in 2023, creating a trade deficit of about $20.3 billion. The high tide of imports has put downward pressure on seafood prices and limits revenue for domestic aquaculture operations. However, tariffs cut both ways. Because Canada and China are the top two destinations for US seafood exports, catches are vulnerable to reciprocal tariffs. Maine and Massachusetts account for 99% of Canada’s lobster imports, while China’s imports of US salmon nearly tripled between 2020 and 2023, per the USDA’s Foreign Agricultural Service.
• Prior to the US-China truce to lower import taxes, US soybean exports faced a 115% tariff entering China, Farm Journal reports. While American soybean exports to China have been declining since 2018, China remains the top destination for US soybeans. During the first Trump administration’s 2018 trade war with China, US agriculture suffered over $27 billion in losses, with soybeans accounting for 71% of those losses, according to the American Soybean Association (ASA). Since then, China has been reducing its purchases of US farm products, including corn and soybeans, and purchasing more from other countries, notably Brazil. China isn’t the only market soybean farmers are worried about. “The announcement of 10% baseline tariffs on all countries and additional, individualized tariff rates on approximately 60 countries impacts all of US soy’s top 10 export markets," according to ASA, adding "This includes No. 1 export market China.”

• After threatening to impose steep fees on China-linked ships entering US ports, the Trump administration revised its plan to lessen the impact on US agriculture and energy exports, The Wall Street Journal reported in April. Trump’s initial plan was roundly criticized by agriculture industry executives, who said it would hobble US farm exports. The administration’s revised plan is to base the fees largely on vessel capacity, resulting in lower fees for smaller ships arriving at US ports. The US Trade Representative is also looking to ease the charges on ships carrying agricultural exports like soybeans and timber, according to WSJ. The USTR’s original plan, announced in February, was to charge Chinese-built vessels between $500,000 and $1.5 million for each port call. The port-fee plan is part of an effort by the Trump administration to revive shipbuilding in the US, which lags behind other countries.
• On the heels of President Trump’s executive order (EO14225) to increase US timber production by opening US National Forests to logging, USDA Secretary Brooke Rollings in April issued a memo declaring an “Emergency Situation Determination," requiring the roll back of environmental protections on almost 60% of the national forests – more than 112 million acres of land mostly in the west – USA Today reports. The emergency order will allow the US Forest Service to bypass many existing environmental regulations and cited protections against wildfires and the need to boost the domestic timber industry as its rationale. A follow-up letter from the US Forest Service directs all Regional Foresters to develop 5-year strategies to increase their timber volume offered, leading to an agencywide increase of 25% over the next 4-5 years. The timber industry applauded the new order while environmentalists called it a “logging giveaway,” according to USA Today.