Have you noticed the prices of some favorite food items? Coffee, bananas, and even chocolate have skyrocketed in price. But that may change. The Trump administration plans to roll back tariffs on certain foreign food items.
What Items?
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the relief would apply to grocery items that are hard to grow in this country, like bananas and other fruits, coffee beans, and cocoa.
President Trump signed an executive order in September that mentioned tariffs on products that “cannot be grown, mined or naturally produced” in the U.S., or cannot be made in amounts that satisfy domestic demand, may be altered.
Mr. Bessent said the President inherited a price crisis from Mr. Joe Biden and that current policies will jump-start U.S. manufacturing and deliver higher wages for Americans.
Critics
President Trump’s critics argue that tariffs increase costs on U.S. importers. These same importers will pay the duties to customs and pass the costs on to the consumer, who will face trickle-down costs at the checkout counter.
When Does This Happen?
Mr. Bessent went on to say,
You’re gonna see substantial announcements over the next couple of days in terms of things we don’t grow here in the United States, coffee being one of them [1].
Mr. Bessent did not detail how the tariff changes on coffee, bananas, and other items would be structured, though he said the move would produce immediate results. This should help with holiday cooking and partying.
Notes:
- ^Howell Jr., T. (2025). Tariff relief coming soon on coffee, bananas, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says. Washington Times (go back ↩)
