Organic trade leaders warn about tariff impacts

In a recent letter to members of the Organic Trade Association, OTA co-CEOs Matthew Dillon and Tom Chapman warned of the impact President Trump’s tariffs could have on the organic sector and supply chains.

In their joint letter, Dillon and Chapman issued their support for fair trade, saying it has “played a vital role in meeting growing consumer demand for organic” and “helped organic businesses and brands grow when domestic supply couldn’t keep pace.”

The co-CEOs also acknowledged challenges, citing that “some foreign operations have attempted to take advantage of access to the U.S. market,” and that “when concerns arose around organic certification integrity, OTA led efforts to strengthen the rules—ultimately resulting in the Strengthening Organic Enforcement rule.”

Dillon and Chapman suggested taking “a balanced approach—one that defends fair, transparent trade to ensure U.S. organic farmers and businesses compete on a level playing field, while also fostering stable, cooperative trading relationships rooted in mutuality” in order to “support domestic farm growth, ensure continued access to organic inputs, and help keep organic products affordable and accessible.”

Unfortunately, they contended, the Trump administration’s tariffs go too far, and could create “instability for businesses and economic hardship for consumers” by “shrinking the market due to inflationary pressure, which harms everyone across the organic value chain as well as the households [they] strive to delight.”  

Dillon and Chapman expressed concern that the tariffs could stall the momentum organic experienced in 2024 after years of slowed growth due to inflation. “Higher tariffs would likely lead to increased shelf prices for organic products”—such as produce like avocadoes and bananas, as well as beef, olive oil, and coffee—which they said “could place additional pressure on manufacturers, brands, and retailers to manage costs and potentially dampen consumer demand if prices inflate.”

The co-CEOs shared that “the U.S. is the world’s largest organic consumption market and imports more organic products than it exports,” citing that U.S. organic exports only totaled about 5 percent of the $70 billion market’s total value. While they acknowledged the tariffs might create domestic opportunities for U.S. farmers producing organic soy, wheat, and corn to “benefit from increased prices and demand as imports in feedstuffs become costlier,” they worried that the higher prices for finished goods could offset some of those benefits.

Dillon and Chapman concluded their letter with a call to action: “We know these tariffs are unsettling and pose challenges for many of your businesses and farms. As OTA continues our advocacy on Capitol Hill and with USDA, we want to hear your stories so that we can share with policymakers the impact on the organic industry. Please reach out to Ivanna Yang, OTA’s vice president of government affairs, to let us know how you are impacted.”

Organic & Non-GMO Insights June 2025