As Canadian steel and aluminum manufacturers prepare to face 25 percent tariffs by U.S. President Donald Trump, set to take effect on March 12, the Alberta Greenhouse Growers Association is waiting, and ready, to respond if Canada's agriculture sector is also hit with American trade tariffs.
Michiel Verheul, president of the Alberta Greenhouse Growers Association and operation manager of High Q Greenhouses located in Sturgeon County, says if a 25 percent is imposed across the board, customers in Alberta will not see any significant rise in costs to locally grown fruits and vegetables.
Verheul explains that new tariffs could increase the costs of seeds and plastic products that Alberta greenhouses purchase from the U.S., but says those costs only account for a small portion of business expenses.
"For most of us, the largest expense is labor, in the horticultural business that usually compensates for 25 to 27 percent of your annual cost," says Verheul. "Then there is utilities, water, gas, power, that makes up another 12 to 15 percent. So the impact for things that we're being tariffed on are not necessarily having a huge impact on the price."
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