13-02-2025
‘It impacts all small businesses:' How imposed tariffs are challenging the wine industry
ROCHESTER, N.Y. (WROC) – Since taking office, President Donald Trump has imposed tariffs on certain items. It has already had ripple effects on the national and local wine industry. As a result, businesses say they are mitigating the challenges amidst uncertainty.
Locally, Casa Larga Vineyards breaks down what they have seen so far.
'For us being a local producer, actually, the only negative to us is the things that we buy. We have to buy if we're using real cork. That has to come from Portugal. Bottles, they don't make them in the United States. So, we have to get them from, I believe they come from Mexico, France, or China. From a raw materials standpoint, we also have tractors and things that are Italian made, so when we need parts, I'm sure the tariffs will be imposed on those,' said Andrea Colaruotolo O'Neill, president of Casa Larga Vineyards.
As regional wine producers work to get ahead of the impacts, those at the national level are also working to achieve a zero-tariff policy.
'It's required that wine is imported by an American importer, an American distributor, and then sold to an American retailer or restaurant. For every dollar spent by Europe or someplace out of the country, American small businesses make sense from that dollar. If you produce wine in the Finger Lakes, they're unique. It's produced there and if you produce wine in France, it doesn't taste like wine from anywhere else because it's not fungible,' said Harmon Skurnik with the U.S. Wine Trade Alliance.
With the additional costs expected to harm wine production across the U.S., experts add it will boil down by region.
'These are all small businesses. It impacts the restaurants, where the wines have to become more expensive. It impacts the winery. It impacts all small businesses whether you're a wine shop, a restaurant, or the winery itself,' said Skurnik.
When it comes to distribution, representatives with the U.S. Wine Trade Alliance note American producers rely on diversity, or a surplus of options.
With these tariffs, they say options are limited, which makes it difficult for wineries to grow and get their business off the ground.
This is a developing story. Stay with News 8 for more updates.
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