Last week, President Trump announced the implementation of a sweeping Executive Order enforcing reciprocal trade tariffs—a move that is already reshaping the trade landscape and could offer some relief for citrus growers.
Under the directive, fresh citrus imports from 12 of the top 13 foreign suppliers to the United States will be subject to higher tariff rates, in some cases more than tripling current duties. The administration’s goal is to pressure foreign governments to reduce barriers to U.S. exports by ensuring “fair and equal” treatment.
Reciprocal Tariff Breakdown: Top Fresh Citrus Importers to the U.S.
According to federal trade data released as of July 31, 2025:
| Country | Import Value | Total Current Tariff |
| Mexico | $833M | 0% |
| Chile | $433M | 10% |
| Peru | $209M | 10% |
| Morocco | $160M | 10% |
| South Africa | $119M | 30% |
| Colombia | $117M | 10% |
| Argentina | $78M | 10% |
| Uruguay | $40M | 10% |
| Israel | $18M | 25% |
| Vietnam | $9M | 30% |
| Guatemala | $6M | 10% |
| Dominican Republic | $5.2M | 10% |
| Spain | $4.5M | 15% |
Spotlight on Key Countries
South Africa
South Africa—exporting over $119 million in citrus to the U.S. annually—now faces a total reciprocal tariff of 30%. Although the reciprocal tariff was initially paused in April, failed negotiations have resulted in its full enforcement. The country’s citrus industry has warned of severe consequences, including supply chain disruption and job losses. The increased tariffs are likely to drive the South African government to try and speed up negotiations on reciprocal trade.
Argentina
Argentina’s citrus, primarily lemons, faces a 10% baseline tariff. The tariff is unlikely to curtail import flows significantly but can help at the margins. The benefits to lemon growers in the U.S. will need to be comprehensively analyzed, with not only the situation with Argentina, but also reciprocal tariffs in the Southern Hemisphere, including South Africa, Chile, and Peru.
While lemon imports from Argentina continue to negatively affect the domestic market, Argentina as a whole does not have a large trade deficit with the U.S. The California citrus industry lobbied hard for additional measures to protect domestic growers from the surge of Argentinian lemon imports, work that will continue as we learn more about the status of negotiations with Argentina.
Mexico
As the largest citrus supplier to the U.S. ($833 million annually), Mexico remains exempt from tariffs under USMCA provisions. However, we will continue to monitor this closely, particularly given Mexico’s large volume of imports and recent concerns over equitable regulatory enforcement and inspection protocols.
Brazil
NEW UPDATE ON BRAZIL TARIFF: We recently learned that orange juice from Brazil was exempt from 40% of the 50% tariff applied to all goods across the board from Brazil, meaning imported OJ will be subject to only a 10% tariff rate.
While we initially hoped an increased tariff on Brazilian OJ could increase the domestic juice market for California to tap into, it appears now that this may not come to fruition.
Export Market Risks: Canada, China, Japan, and Korea
We are also closely watching tariff negotiations to preserve and expand citrus export market access. Most of our top export markets already have free trade agreements, but retaliation from our top markets due to the U.S. reciprocal tariffs have and may continue to impact export opportunities. Canada, one of California’s top citrus export destinations, imposed a 25% retaliatory tariff on U.S. citrus earlier this year, after the initial U.S. tariff threats. Although those early tariffs were temporarily paused, Canada did not reverse its retaliatory measures, which remain in place today.
Additionally:
- China continues to enforce high retaliatory tariffs on U.S. citrus, limiting market access and competitiveness. Negotiations are ongoing, and we are hopeful that reduced retaliatory tariffs can provide additional market access to high-quality California citrus.
- Details on the recent bilateral agreements with Japan and Korea are not yet available on how they may impact citrus trade. Still, the framework agreements are a great sign that higher retaliatory tariffs on our products will not be imposed at this time. CCM, along with our partners in the citrus industry, will continue to monitor these agreements to fully understand how citrus may be treated under these updated frameworks.
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