Donald the Dreaded

Let’s be honest. Not everyone, but many fear Donald Trump’s return to the White House. In Russia, President Vladimir Putin, before the current president of the United States announced that “he will not run for a second term,” said he favored the re-election of Joe Biden, “an old-school, consistent, and predictable man.”

US NATO allies fear being up against the wall after the victory of Trump, who has repeatedly threatened to suspend US funding for the Atlantic alliance unless European countries increase their defense spending.

In Italy, producers of famous cheeses, such as Grana Padano and Parmigiano Reggiano, fear the imposition of new duties, which Trump is already threatening, and the resulting decline in exports and business.

After Trump’s defeat in 2020, the United States has become the fastest growing market for Italian exporters in recent years. According to the Italian press, “in 2019, Donald Trump, then US president, imposed duties on many goods produced in the European Union, including Italian cheeses.” As the November US presidential election approaches, his possible re-election is beginning to rattle Italian manufacturers, who have managed to rebuild the US market after difficult years.

The US duties imposed an additional tariff of 25% on exports of various European products to the USA, including dairy products, such as parmesan and pecorino, sausage products, such as ham, as well as crustaceans, shellfish, citrus fruits, juices, and liquors. Subsequently, prices of Italian cheeses in the USA soared “to the point of discouraging importers, and turnover dropped to almost zero.”

It wasn’t until 2021, early in Biden’s presidency and after 17 years of trade disputes, that the EU and the USA agreed to a truce that eliminated tariffs on European food products. In 2023, Grana’s exports reached a total of 2,482,891 wheels of cheese, which is still an increase of 6.55% over the previous year. Currently, almost half of the total production is destined for overseas markets, with more than 28,000 tons of parmesan shipped for export in 2023. The United States is also a major destination for Grana Padano outside of Europe.

Another threat to the Italian agri-food industry could come from the East: with the trade war between the EU and China, there are concerns about the imposition of duties by the Beijing government.