Your favorite brew could soon cost you more as beermakers brace for President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canadian goods. Jodi Hernandez reports.
Your favorite brew could soon cost you more as Bay Area breweries brace for President Donald Trump's tariffs on Canadian goods.
About 25% tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminum are set to start at midnight Wednesday, followed by tariffs on other goods next month as triggered price spikes.
“For us as a small company, these tariffs are terrifying in many ways,” said Blaine Landberg, the owner of Walnut Creek-based Calicraft Brewing Company.
Landberg said the trade war that's brewing between the U.S. and Canada has him feeling incredibly uneasy.
Earlier Tuesday morning, Trump threatened to double the planned 25% tariff on steel and aluminum to 50%. While he later backed off the threat, the stress is mounting for beermakers.
“I think that's the hardest part of all of this is that there's no ability to plan. And our heads constantly on a swivel,” Landberg said.
Calicraft Brewing Company uses millions of aluminum cans from Canada every year and believes the 25% tariff cost will hit breweries hard.
“Our single most expensive part of a package is aluminum. That's going to really affect not only our bottom line but also is going to affect the consumer at the end,” Landberg said.
Calicraft Brewing Company also uses tons of Canadian malted barley, which will also be subject to a 25% tariff next month.
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“We specifically use barley that comes from Canada because it's a little plumper and a little richer,” Landberg said. “I'd say a lot of folks in the Western United States and throughout the country are using that as well.”
Amid the news, Calicraft is currently expanding. But with the price of the building materials expected to rise, those projects are also going to cost more than budgeted.
Landberg told NBC Bay Area on Tuesday that while he will absorb some of the rising cost of goods, customers will have to shoulder much of it.
“It will trickle down to the consumer, whether we like it or not,” he said. “And definitely, it's not what we want. We're trying to attract consumers and not push them away.”
