French cheese and wine producers have warned of the damaging impact that US President Donald Trump’s threatened 30 per cent tariffs on imports from the EU would have on the country’s agriculture industry.
A 30 per cent duty would be “disastrous” for France’s food industry, said Jean-François Loiseau, president of food lobby group ANIA, while François Xavier Huard, CEO of dairy association FNIL, said: “It’s a real shock for milk and cheese producers – this is an important market for us”.
“It’s a new environment we will have to get used to – I don’t think this is temporary,” Huard said on Sunday, referring to shifting rules and flaring trade tensions.
He noted the industry may have to rethink its strategy relating to the markets in which it operates.
France’s dairy sector exports nearly half of its production, including to the United States, which imports mostly cheeses such as Brie but also fresh products like yogurt and butter.
It risks losing annual sales worth tens of millions of euros, said Huard, noting the sector sells €350 million (US$409 million) worth of dairy products to the US annually.