Alberta cattle producers express optimism in wake of Trump's tariff threat

Cattle producers in Alberta don't appear to be overly concerned by the threat of tariffs by United States president-elect Donald Trump.

Trump, who takes office on Jan. 20, said last week he would impose a 25 per cent tariff on all Canadian goods coming into the U.S.

Graham Friesen with Buster Industries Ltd. is among those in the cattle industry who spoke with CTV News outside of the Innisfail Auction Mart on Wednesday.

He said the threat of tariffs is a negotiation tactic commonly used by Trump, and that it's too early to be concerned about any sort of impact it could have.

"I think it's a game. It's a tactic that Trump uses," he said. "He's a game player. He's serious about it, but it's not thing that we can't handle."

Friesen says the industry is currently faring quite well.

"We are at an all-time high right now, this is the highest calf crop ever in Alberta," he said. "Farmers and ranchers get paid well for their calves. I hope it continues into the new year that we can make some money on these high-priced calves."

Friesen says about 70 per cent of his boxed beef crosses the Canada-U.S. border.

"That would probably be the one that would get taxed," he said.

"I do believe there's going to be some tariffs because he did that last term, but as far as in the cattle business, we don't know. I think it's too early to tell what the fallout will be from that if there's going to be any."

Duane Daines of the Innisfail Auction Market says there was some uncertainty that crept in, after Trump announced a tariff threat.

"It's just talk, I think we've heard this song before for quite a few years," he said.

"When it first came out, I was a little uncertain. There's a lot of major players in the beef industry – Canada and U.S. – and we're all connected together. I just thought they might sit on their hands for a couple days, but that didn't happen, so that was a pleasant surprise."

Daines says most calves are selling between $2,000 and $2,500 per head.

According to Canfax, just under 45 per cent of Canada's beef is exported, 75 per cent of which is to the U.S.

"We've had record highs, but we've also probably had record costs going into it, just like everything else," said Daines.

"We're all in this deal together, and we all should work together. Talk is cheap, but we just want to keep rolling on in our industry."

Trump said he plans to implement the tariff on the first day of his presidency unless Canada and Mexico can improve border security and the fentanyl crisis.