Why Canadians Don't Really Care About U.S. Tariffs | Opinion

As a fresh wave of U.S. tariffs takes effect this week, one might expect widespread outrage north of the border. After all, Canada is America's largest trading partner, and new trade barriers could theoretically disrupt supply chains and push prices up for consumers. But if you take a stroll through Toronto or Montreal—or the waves of social media emanating from each city—you won't find much handwringing. The general reaction? An icy northern shrug.

The Ontario Liquor Control Board (LCBO) and its Quebec counterpart, the Société des alcools du Québec (SAQ), have already responded decisively: they're pulling all U.S. products from their shelves beginning on Tuesday in revenge. That means no more American whiskey, no more California wines—not just for individual consumers, but for restaurants and bars as well.

While that might sound dramatic to some, the sentiment on the ground is clear: people will just drink something else. That's especially true if Canada retaliates with tariffs on U.S. goods in return. One person I spoke to at a Montreal café this morning put it simply: "If the price of my Florida orange juice goes up, I'll pass and just buy more Azerbaijani pomegranate juice. It's no big deal for me. I like them both equally."

To understand why this latest round of tariffs is misguided, let's break down how tariffs actually function. A tariff is essentially a tax on imported goods. When the U.S. government imposes a tariff on Canadian products, Canadian businesses can either absorb the cost (cutting into their own profits) or pass it on to American consumers, making those goods more expensive.

For Canadian exporters, the impact can vary. Some industries—like steel and aluminum, which have been targeted in the past—may feel real pain. But others will simply pivot. If selling to the U.S. becomes less profitable, they'll increase trade with the European Union, China, or emerging markets. That's exactly what happened when Trump's first administration imposed tariffs on Canadian goods. Canada retaliated, and rather than buckle under pressure, it found new buyers elsewhere.

For Americans, though, tariffs are a self-inflicted wound. The intended effect of a tariff is to protect domestic industries by making foreign goods more expensive. The actual effect, however, is often the opposite. When the price of imported steel, electronics, or produce rises due to tariffs, U.S. businesses that rely on these goods face higher costs. That means more expensive domestically made products for American consumers and reduced competitiveness for American companies in global markets.

Here's the rub: Canadians have options, but Americans have fewer. Take the example of the LCBO and SAQ. By pulling American products from their shelves, they're not leaving consumers high and dry. They're simply replacing those products with alternatives from France, Italy, Australia, and beyond.

America lacks the same flexibility. U.S. consumers are deeply accustomed to a market where cheap goods—especially from China and Mexico—are readily available. When tariffs disrupt those supply chains, the result is often higher prices with no easy alternative. American farmers, manufacturers, and retailers, many of whom depend on exports or foreign materials, feel the squeeze almost immediately.

And Canada, like any country, isn't taking new tariffs lying down. Ottawa has responded with its own countermeasures and has no plans to relent unless the U.S. does. The last time the U.S. imposed broad tariffs on Canadian goods, Canada retaliated with targeted measures against politically sensitive American industries. That included tariffs on U.S. bourbon (hurting distillers in Kentucky) and orange juice (hurting farmers in Florida).

This kind of strategic retaliation ensures that U.S. industries—especially those with powerful political lobbies—feel the consequences. And when American exporters suddenly find themselves cut off from Canadian buyers, they don't just lose those sales temporarily. Many Canadian companies will move on permanently, finding suppliers and partners elsewhere. Once those relationships are formed, they don't revert just because a tariff is eventually lifted.

Another overlooked consequence of U.S. trade barriers is that they encourage Canada to strengthen ties with other economies. In recent years, Canada has signed major free trade agreements, including the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) with the EU and the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which includes Japan, Australia, and other Pacific nations. These deals give Canadian businesses access to enormous markets with favorable terms.

If the U.S. wants to make itself a less reliable trading partner, Canada will simply double down on these relationships. That means more European cheese, more Australian wine, and more Japanese cars flowing into Canada—and fewer American products. Once these shifts take hold, it's difficult for the U.S. to regain its foothold. What Trump and his advisors have underestimated (dramatically, I would say) is that Canadians don't easily forget and are as fond of a grudge as of weirdly cheesy gravy-enrobed French (of is it "Freedom" again?) fries.

Beyond the economics, tariffs are terrible politics. They tend to be framed as strong, decisive action, but the reality is that they're a blunt instrument that hurts both sides. History has shown that even relatively strategic tariff wars rarely end well and, IMHO, this is simply a dumb one. They raise prices, disrupt industries, and ultimately lead to job losses. More often than not, they end in negotiations where both sides quietly roll back the measures that caused all the trouble in the first place.

For Canada, the response is simple: move on. The country has alternatives, and unlike the U.S., it has spent decades cultivating them. The next time an American policymaker considers another round of trade barriers, they should ask themselves a simple question: if Canadians don't care, who's really getting hurt here?

About Aron Solomon

A Pulitzer Prize-nominated writer, Aron Solomon, JD, is the Chief Strategy Officer forAMPLIFY. He has taught entrepreneurship at McGill University and the University of Pennsylvania, and was elected to Fastcase 50, recognizing the top 50 legal innovators in the world. Aron has been featured in Newsweek, The Hill,, Fast Company, Fortune, Forbes, CBS News, CNBC, USA Today, ESPN, TechCrunch, BuzzFeed, Venture Beat, The Independent, Fortune China, Abogados, Today's Esquire, Yahoo!,ABA Journal,Law.com,The Boston Globe, and many other leading publications across the globe.

The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.