- Donald Trump has imposed a 17 per cent tariff on tomatoes imported from Mexico, raising concerns about increased prices for consumers and businesses.
- The tariffs took effect after the US withdrew from the nearly three-decade-old Tomato Suspension Agreement, with the Secretary of Commerce stating American farmers had been ‘crushed by unfair trade practices’. The Commerce Department calculated the 17 per cent import tax to measure the percentage by which Mexican tomatoes were allegedly sold at unfair prices in the US.
- The measure is expected to result in higher costs at supermarkets and restaurants, with one Californian restaurant owner predicting bankruptcy within three months.
- Mexico, which supplies about 70 per cent of US tomatoes, has refuted claims of dumping, insisting the popularity of their produce is due to its quality, and stated that substitution would be impossible.
A small price to pay for freedom.
Good thing egg prices have dropped.
Wait…
Is this some kind of american problem that im too european to understand? /j
anything to get people to stop talking about the epstein files, hes been doing tariffs since last week.
That 17% tariff will magically turn into 200% price increases thanks to algorithmic price fixing.
For those that don’t know for fresh market tomatoes.
Indeterminate tomato vines can be grown for years if they don’t freeze.
Mexico has invested heavily in greenhouses, high tunnels and thrip-proof net-houses. These allow for year round production of tomatoes. This was done with government money.
Canada has also invested heavily in greenhouses to grow tomatoes and produce them year round. This was also done with government money.
Meanwhile the U.S. focused on open field machine harvested sauce tomatoes controlled by massive corporations. There are still some U.S. tomato growers that rely almost 100% on immigrant labor. In general they produce 1/10th the tonnage per acre at higher cost even with the cheap labor.
What manufacturing sector of the American economy doesn’t focus on migrant labor?
Trump probably hasn’t eaten a vegetable his whole life. Now if it was an increase on a KFC bucket of chicken, this would not happen.
Having worked at McDonald’s I imagine he’s one of the “no pickles, no onions, no lettuce, no tomatoes, add bacon, extra bacon, extra mayo” guys.
And no salt on the fries during rush when the fries are already fresh + multiple salt packets.
I didn’t even know you could order fries that way.
Trump doesn’t pay for shit so why would he care how much food costs?
Technically, he likes ketchup on his steak I thought so does that count as a vegetable?
Out of all his war crimes, this one might be the worst
Yes, and he eats grass fed beef, it counts as vegan.
It is condiment, so no, but probably the closet to one he has ever come.
But he invented the groceries word!
I’m so glad I accidentally over planted tomato seeds now. I’ll have to give some extras to our neighbors, we really only have a little patio to put stuff on or the apartment flips out.
My neighbors have some really good-looking Roma tomatoes out front. They’ve had a good crop this summer. I’ll bet they taste a lot better than the ones from the grocery store, too.
You can have hydroponic cherry tomatoes indoors in 90 days.
The initial setup needs lights and aquarium air pump some rock wool tomato seeds and a couple of 5 gallon buckets and a little hydroponic fertilizer.
Look out for each other.
Society is no longer.
But we are strong together.
What an odd statement. What is society, if not a group of people looking out for each other?
Buy local, folks. I got far higher quality tomatoes at a farm stand the other day than I can find at any big box store in the US. The prices can’t be beat.
That’s great in the high summer, but good luck finding those locally grown tomatoes in January.
They don’t seem to farm tomatoes locally where I am, but the local half-runner beans are great.
Buy local, and buy seasonal. That’s just as important, because if you’re shopping for avocados in Milwaukee in November, those fuckers have traveled a long way and was picked a long time ago. You might not live in a climate that has oranges or strawberries year round. Accept this and choose food that doesn’t have a swollen climate footprint.
Also eat free-range billionaires. Eating one billionaire would do more good for the climate than every other change you and 300 of your friends could make.
I love me a farm fresh avocado picked ripe from the Milwaukee avocado farms every June.
Not eating anything except local produce might get you winter scurvy in some places.
But you have a good sensible point about the billionaires.
One word: cabbage.
Two words: yummy cabbage.
Many words: I actually agree with you in general, I just love cabbage which, on top of many other benefits, is SUPER high in vitamin C and excellently suited for climates where not much grows in winter🙂
I approve of cabbage but I’m not delighted with most of the recipes I’ve used. Got something really different? And please, my body can’t tolerate much capsaicin so don’t lean into heavy 🌶️. Other spicy spices are fine.
Sorry, but I just munch on raw cabbage myself 🤷
They’re great as a salad base, too.
Oh! Green, red, napa? Carry around a head and pull off a leaf at a time or bite into the whole thing? Or slice it into shreds?
Oh! Green, red, napa?
Pretty much everything except Brussels sprouts and cauliflower 🤷
Carry around a head and pull off a leaf at a time
Yes, except for the carrying around. I eat it at home
There are plenty of sources of vitamin c that are available in the winter. Broccoli, kale, and Brussels sprouts are all available in colder climates well into fall and winter. Sailors would get scurvy from eating fish and cured meat and drinking only ale and water for months at a time. Malnourished children get scurvy because of neglect. It’s not that hard for adults with access to fresh food and sufficient economic freedom to get enough vitamins.
Canning/jarring/preserving/dehydrating.
Learn them.
I’m lucky enough to live in SoCal, I have tomatoes and blueberries and lemons and miner’s lettuce in pots on my balcony year-round. And I make lovely strawberry jam, but I’m well aware that the boiling necessary for preservation destroys most of the Vitamin C.
Learning to eat what’s seasonal is a great way to understand world cuisines better. It’s advantageous when traveling…
Enjoy it while there are still pickers working on said farm.
They’re family-run operations, proudly owned by generations of Latinos, in many local cases. You’re talking full-on internment camps if they’re to forcibly remove these legal citizens from their businesses. I’m not saying that isn’t in the works but these aren’t only field workers vulnerable to being terrorized. There’s a vast co-op network they pull resources from. If trump is going to truly go after all production, food will cease to be available. We will see economic destruction that will make the Great Depression pale in comparison.
That may be less far-fetched than it seems, if Laura “Jigsaw” Loomer still has Trump’s ear: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/laura-loomer-alcatraz-alligator-lives-matter-trump-b2782150.html
Nothing seems far fetched anymore. It’s only the commitment to total devastation that gets him chickening out.
Are such farm stands present in cities, though?
Pretty much every major city in the US. I’ve been to farmer’s markets in multiple red cities and multiple blue cities.
Though, in some cities, they’re only open half the year because of weather conditions in the other half.
Sounds great while they are open, thanks.
Depends on the region. I can find about 5 on Victoria Avenue in Riverside, California alone. Farm stands are everywhere under our noses in this state and we can wind up overlooking these amenities.
In LA, back in the day, I would have been going to farmer’s markets more, which are a bit more work because they have limited schedules. Still, there are brilliant places like Super King there, that have a lot of value for the money. I also miss other specialties there like sushi-grade fish mongers, etc. There are quite a lot of options in Southern California and beyond such as Latino supermarket chains like Vallartas, Cardena’s and Northgate/Gonzalez Bros as well as Asian options like 99 Ranch Market.
The real reason for all of this is he wants to disenfranchise the poor and destitute to the point where they have no choice but join the army to get food and healthcare.
They are force feeding the machine.
You know why they need that? Because a BIG WAR is coming.
they haven’t figured out what the big war will be but they’re working as hard as their fat ceo asses will let them
Right after Canada and the EU backed down on the foreign digital taxes.
My local grocery store sells tomatoes starting at $3.99/lb.
A pack of seeds was $1.50 and my plants are 2-4’ tall and loaded.
Which is great and all if you have room to grow them—and aren’t a complete brown thumb. But a lot of people live in high-rise apartments without so much as a balcony.
And before someone recommends container growing indoors—assuming the apartment is oriented so the tomato gets enough light—that adds also the cost of pot, soil, and probably fertilizer, and then you have a very toxic plant in your house, which needs to be kept away from kids and pets.
Ahh true. I do have outdoor pots for mine and natural sunlight. My grow tent houses herbs like basil that I use year round.
vErY tOxIc PlAnT
Jesus fucking hyperdramatic christ.
It is though. It’s a member of the nightshade family, and every part is quite toxic, except the fruit. Not an issue for a sensible adult, but kids and pets are not very sensible.
I’ve been around tomatoes way to much. I get a rash if I touch the plants now.
Eggplants cause severe hives like poison oak.
As caretaker of a cat with pica, the toxic indoor plants can lead to very costly vet bills. Probably even worse with toddlers
Sure, it’s midsummer. But if the tariffs are still on in December… Well, I’ll probably still have cherry tomatoes on my balcony in Los Angeles, but it won’t work for someone in Minnesota.
Fortunately, TACO.
They should just throw them over the wall.
Donaldine Trumpuannette: let them eat kiwi instead.
He probably thought he was throwing tariffs on Italy. “Don’t get me wrong folks, I love Sbarro…”
