Minnesota cannabis business owner sees costs rise as Trump threatens copper tariffs
The Trump administration on Tuesday celebrated a new trade deal with Indonesia, which is one of the world's largest producers of copper. He's threatened a 50% tariff on copper imports starting next month.
For cannabis business owner Steven Brown, who founded Nothing But Hemp, he's already seen his costs rise.
It takes a container made out of copper to reach the right temperature in order to create hard candies.
"This one bowl alone cost me $3,000, now with the new tariffs it would be $4,500," Brown said.
With a full-scale operation, there are other tariffs he can't beat.
"Oh gosh, our packaging has been a nightmare," Brown said.
He imports herbs and mushrooms, as well as plastic pouches.
"The cost has been atrocious so it definitely hurts. And we've had a lot of issues of it getting stuck in customs where we've never had any of those issues before," he said. "We haven't had to pass it on to the the consumer yet but we are getting really close in some areas."
His eyes are on the prize as cannabis grows in Minnesota. Latest numbers show that even before it became legal, 34% of Minnesotans over age 12 used cannabis.
"We hope for the best and hopefully there is going to be some policy changes on these tariffs," Brown said.
The White House says tariffs are needed to ensure fair trade, bring back manufacturing and protect national security.
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