The Trump administration has pitched its trade policy as a win for farmers and ranchers, but representatives from Arizona’s agricultural industry say the president’s tariffs and attacks on free trade are hurting, not helping, them.
“Tariffs hurt the American farmer,” said Jim Boyle, a fourth-generation dairy farmer, who is a board member for the Arizona Farm Bureau and United Dairymen of Arizona. “U.S. farmers are the most productive farmers in the United States, and our export market really does help feed the world.”
That contradicts messaging from the White House, which has defended Trump’s tariff policies, claiming they will open new markets and stop cheaper goods from flowing into the U.S. from other countries.
“To the Great Farmers of the United States: Get ready to start making a lot of agricultural product to be sold INSIDE of the United States. Tariffs will go on external product on April 2nd. Have fun!” Trump posted on his social media in March 2025, referencing the wide-ranging tariffs he ordered, starting in April.
Boyle made the comments during a roundtable with Gov. Katie Hobbs on Friday, where state officials and industry leaders talked about the need to preserve the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, or USMCA, the North American free trade deal that replaced NAFTA.
The USMCA is now under a mandatory review, and the three countries are supposed to meet in July to decide whether to extend the deal past its original expiration date in 2036.
Boyle and other speakers at the roundtable said the USMCA is needed to ensure the trade relationship between Mexico, Canada and the U.S. remains strong.
“Tariff-free trade between Arizona and Mexico in particular has allowed the dairy industry in Arizona to stay competitive, and we're looking forward to continuing a tariff-free trading environment in the future,” Boyle said.
For instance, he said that around 25% of dairy products produced by United Dairymen of Arizona members are sent out of the country, with Mexico taking in about 65% of those exports.
And imports from Mexico ensure that Arizona shoppers can find a variety of products year-round, said Lance Jungmeyer with the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas, which represents the importers that bring in that produce.
He pointed to a freeze in Florida this year that caused $3 billion in losses to that state, which usually exports a variety of fruits and vegetables to Arizona.
“Florida had freezes and they couldn't produce all of the crops that we weren't getting from Mexico anymore because of the tariffs, but that raised prices for everyone,” Jungmeyer said.
Paul Brierley, director of the Arizona Department of Agriculture, said the cost of fertilizers is another major variable that affects food prices in the U.S.
American farmers get a lot of their fertilizer from Canada, followed by Russia and the Middle East, he said.
“Those are two places we don’t want to be dependent on,” Brierley said.
But the Trump administration has signaled that the president isn’t happy with the USMCA, which was negotiated by his administration during his first term.
Last month, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told the New York Times that the president “thinks it’s a bad deal.”
And Hobbs said the administration is considering keeping additional tariffs on the books alongside the USMCA.
“I will just say that when we met with the U.S. Trade representative, the indication we got from that office was that under a renewed USMCA, that they don't see any possibility of not having tariffs,” Hobbs said, though she said the administration did not provide specific examples.
Most of the business and agricultural officials in attendance at Hobbs’ roundtable said they disagreed with that approach.
Danny Seiden, president of the Arizona Chamber of Commerce, was especially critical of the administration’s tariff policies as he moderated the roundtable.
“A lot of times we're being told they're doing this for farmers,” he said.
“They’re not,” an Arizona corn soybean farmer in the crowd responded.
Instead of making major changes, Boyle said he believes the agreement needs minor changes, which he characterized as “tweaking around the margins.”
That includes toughening regulations to ensure Canada is complying with requirements of the agreement.
“With little enforceability, those issues can get out of hand,” Boyle said.
But both Boyle and Hobbs were adamant that the U.S. shouldn’t blow up the deal, with Hobbs saying, “we should be focused on trade policies that continue to put America first, that continue to benefit Americans and Arizonans, as well as create a strong, competitive North America, because that benefits all of us.”
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