On August 15, MSU Trustees Kelly Tebay, Brianna Scott, Mike Balow, and Rebecca Behar-Cook took time to visit with Michigan agriculture leaders at the Saginaw Valley Research and Extension Center.
MABA thanks these Trustees for their insights, good questions and an informative conversation with farm organization and agribusiness leaders. In comments to the Trustees, we spotlighted the importance of ag innovation and supporting public trust in it; the impact of budget cuts on MSU’s efforts to support agriculture; and the positive impact made by CANR, Extension and AgBioResearch for the industry.
Thank you again, Trustees, for your time and for keeping Michigan Agriculture top of mind! We would also like to thank the leadership team of the Michigan State University College of Agriculture and Natural Resources for attending, and Rob Zeldenrust for organizing this meeting and making it possible.
Here are some photos from this special event:
Updated April 2, 2025 | 9:00 AM
The Michigan Agri-Business Association continues to receive various inquiries from our members about potential tariffs.
MABA is sharing regular updates as a service to our members and interested partners. This message primarily concerns potential tariffs on USMCA partners.
Current Update on Tariffs – August 1
Ahead of an August 1 deadline, the Administration made a number of announcements of interest to MABA members. These follow on several weeks that have been marked by the announcement of several key trade framework agreements (for example with the EU, Japan, etc.)
On July 31, an Executive Order from President Trump set higher import duty rates of 10% to 41% starting in seven days for around 70 nations. Some of these countries had reached tariff-reducing deals with the U.S. and others have not. The order includes an exemption for goods shipped during the next week. Goods from countries not listed in the order face a 10% rate.
We encourage members to note the 7-day implementation window as it means there’s still a window for negotiations before these tariffs enter into effect. We assess there is a reasonable potential that additional framework agreements, changes to the tariff rates and so forth could be announced.
Here is the July 31 order (lists tariff rates by country): https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/07/further-modifying-the-reciprocal-tariff-rates/
Here is one of many overview articles: https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/31/trump-executive-order-higher-tariff-rates-00487913
Mexico
Mexico is a key nation of interest to Michigan, which exports substantial amounts of food and agricultural products there. President Trump announced this week that he and Mexican President Sheinbaum arrived at a 90-day extension to continue trade negotiations. “We have agreed to extend, for a 90-day period, the exact same deal as we had for the last short period of time, namely, that Mexico will continue to pay a 25% fentanyl tariff, 25% tariff on cars, and 50% tariff on steel, aluminum, and copper. Additionally, Mexico has agreed to immediately terminate its non-tariff trade barriers, of which there were many,” he wrote.
Canada
Canada is Michigan agriculture’s number-one trading partner and trade with Canada is a top priority for our industry. The Administration announced July 31 a 35% tariff, up from 25% on non-USMCA compliant goods. The USMCA exemption remains for both Canada and Mexico, which is highly important. We continue to hear from members about concerns surrounding trade with Canada. Elimination of the USMCA exemption and/or out-of-control escalation of tariffs between the U.S. and Canada would be highly concerning for Michigan agriculture.
MABA’s position on trade and tariffs:
Resources on Tariff Compliance
Amid tariff discussion in recent weeks, some MABA members have asked operational questions about compliance with tariffs. U.S. Customs and Border Protection offers several introductory resources on this topic which may prove useful in the future:
July 1, 2025 — The Michigan Agri-Business Association (MABA) Educational Trust announced it will award scholarships to 19 students planning to enter the agriculture industry. These scholarships offered through the Educational Trust totaled more than $24,000 for the Fall 2025 collegiate semester.
“With the partnership of leaders across Michigan agriculture, the Michigan Agri-Business Association Educational Trust continues to achieve impressive results and support young people statewide,” said MABA Educational Trust Chair Ward Forquer. “We thank all those Michigan agribusinesses that continue to step up with support. We are pleased to support these impressive young people as they prepare for industry careers.”
From 2020-2025, the MABA Educational Trust has awarded more than 150 scholarships to deserving young people pursuing higher education. Those awarded scholarships for Fall 2025 include:
Students are eligible to receive up to 4 scholarships from the MABA Educational Trust during their educational career. The next application deadline for the 2026 Spring semester is October 1, 2025. Go here for more information on the MABA Educational Trust Scholarship Program and encourage students you know going into the agribusiness industry to apply.
June 30, 2025 – MABA President Chuck Lippstreu joined Chip Flory on AgriTalk to discuss Michigan-Canada ag trade. The discussion followed an earlier meeting between Lippstreu and Ontario Agri Business Association members the previous week.
“Michigan exports $3 billion in value worth of [agricultural] products every year,” Lippstreu noted in the discussion. “40 to 45% of that moves to Canada. So $1.2, 1.3 billion worth of exports into Canada every year….it’s an incredibly important market for us.”
The conversation covered ongoing U.S.-Canada trade negotiations, the upcoming opening of the Gordie Howe International Bridge in the Detroit area, and beyond.
Listen to the full interview at this link.
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