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Texas Tech: ag first to take border trade disruptions
The blockade at one of North America’s largest trade crossings might be over, but the motivation is not.
The Freedom Convoy as they called themselves brought two-way trade between the U.S. and Canada to a halt for nearly a week to take a stand against COVID-19 mandates. Canadian shipments of meat and dairy products along with fresh fruits, vegetables, and prepared foods from the U.S. felt immediate impacts according to Texas Tech University ag economist Sunghun Lim.
“The blockade issue is not just a COVID issue,” he says.
Lim tells Brownfield the blockade signals a building of trade tensions between nations with many supporters of Canada’s conservative party taking part and supported by U.S. Republicans. While many Republican supporters come from ag communities, unfortunately, Lim says they are the first to feel unintended consequences with ag trade being the most disproportionally impacted.
“That dramatically and directly affects our agribusinesses,” he says.
Lim adds while the protest has dispersed, there is still the possibility of more in the future at either side of the border or even with Mexico which would directly hit ag trade first.