Posted on April, 13, 2025 at 08:39 pm
High US tariffs on Chinese shipping costs now represent a real challenge for Irish grain and raw material importers.
This was one of the key points highlighted by Northern Ireland Grain Trade Association (NIGTA) president, David O’Connor, when he spoke at the organisation’s 2025 annual dinner last night (April 10).
Large tonnages of corn and corn gluten are imported onto the island of Ireland from the US on an annual basis.
Significantly, it is envisaged that the high US tariffs on China announced by US President Donald Trump over the past week will be imposed directly on Chinese-owned shipping and on boats manned by Chinese crews.
O’Connor said: “The current market situation remains unpredictable as we await further tariff announcements.
“From an Northern Ireland perspective, the commodities that are affected by Phase one and most likely to be affected by the Phase two EU tariffs are US corn and US corn by-products.
“The island of Ireland is historically a significant market for US corn by-product. It is clear that the proposed tariffs on US corn by-products are likely to have a disproportionate impact on Ireland: north and south.
“NIGTA has been highlighting this issue with officials in the Northern Ireland Office in Brussels and continues to seek clarity on behalf of members in relation to the possibility of duty reimbursement under the Windsor Framework.”
O’Connor went on to explain why tariffs on Chinese shipping could become a major concern for global supply chains.
“The US has also proposed levies on Chinese-built and owned vessels using US ports. This levy equates to $1 million to $1.5 million per port visit, or approximately $25 per tonne of grain on a handy vessel.
“To put the impact of this proposal in context, it is reported that China builds 61% of the world’s new merchant vessels.”
According to the NIGTA president, international and national policy decision making can have a major impact on global supply chains.
The European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) is a case in point.
“Over the past year, as an industry we have spent a lot of time and effort preparing for EUDR implementation, the date of which was to be December 30, 2024,” O’Connor said.
“This has since been delayed until the end of December this year. We sit here this evening with the same questions and concerns as we had a year ago. “
“Amazingly, the competent authority for Northern Ireland is still to be identified, and we await clarity on where Northern Ireland sits in relation to the divergence between the European regulation on deforestation and UK legislation on Forest Risk Commodities.”
Source: Agriland