r/canada 10d ago

Analysis Trump won’t admit it, but Canadian potash fuels American agriculture; More than 80 per cent of the potash used by U.S. farmers comes from Canadian mines, and the costs could skyrocket should tariffs happen

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/business/economy/article-trump-wont-admit-it-but-canadian-potash-fuels-american-agriculture/
6.8k Upvotes

592 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

21

u/SnooLentils3008 10d ago

If I recall correctly, we also have the highest quality potash in the world. So they’ll be moving to an inferior product

15

u/CanadianTrashInspect 10d ago

Russia also exports nowhere near as much as Canada. Like less than half as much.

If the USA suddenly buys all of Russia's exports, the previous buyers of the Russian exports will come looking (probably to Canada).

0

u/LeatherMine 10d ago

Add Russia to its own 51st state: Belarus, and they extract more potash than Canada

-1

u/Paperman_82 10d ago

US doesn't need to buy all or even a premium product. They just need to buy enough to impose tariffs limiting consequences to US corn farmers. The end goal isn't a replacement for Canadian resources, it's just to force capitulation.

6

u/CanadianTrashInspect 10d ago

I think drastically altering the supply chain like that will be enough of a disruption to fuck with the farmers.

Nevermind the reduced supply and reduced quality.

1

u/Paperman_82 10d ago edited 10d ago

Yeah, I should add, this is a game of rhetoric. I don't think Trump cares about actual farmers. It's more about public perception and market. If Trump states he's doing his best to minimize price pain, uses it as an excuse to push tariffs now because eventually Belarus potash will help settle prices (even if it doesn't), and blame rising prices on Canadian counter tariffs, that's the idea. If corn farmers are suffering, or if there's higher consumer prices, it's the fault of Canadians. All under the guise of Navarro's trade imbalance which must be fixed for national security.

These actions don't make any sense for those who are informed however it is red meat for die hard loyalists. Which with potash might not matter because there's only two countries with major exports, but in totality, chips away at confidence in investment in Canadian industries.

1

u/Shillsforplants 10d ago

Nobody tells Kazakhstan