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New York Post
9 hours ago
- Business
- New York Post
Canned foods could rise by as much as 30 cents apiece due to Trump's tariffs on steel: report
Soup, beans, and even pineapple could soon cost more — not because of what's inside the can, but because of the can itself. A recent move by the Trump administration to double tariffs on imported steel to 50% is expected to raise the price of tin-coated steel, a material critical to food cans. Industry experts warn that the cost of canned goods could increase by 9% to 15% as a result, according to the Consumer Brands Association, which represents major food companies like Campbell's, Hormel and Del Monte. 5 The cost of canned goods could increase by 9% to 15% as a result of Trump's tariffs on steel, according to industry experts. Walter Cicchetti – That could mean a can of vegetables currently priced at $2 might jump by as much as 30 cents, according to the Wall Street Journal. 'The American consumer is going to pay more for their cans,' Dan Dietrich, vice president of strategy at Trivium Packaging, told the Journal. The higher tariffs, announced June 4, are intended to boost demand for US-made steel by making imported alternatives less competitive. But manufacturers say the domestic supply of tin-plate — the ultra-thin, tin-coated steel used in food cans — is nowhere near enough to meet demand. Most US steel is made from scrap, which lacks the purity and consistency needed for food-grade tin-plate. 'I would love nothing more than to allocate more purchases to the United States, but the overall production capacity is not there,' said Robert Gatz, general manager of Can Corp. of America, a Pennsylvania-based manufacturer that specializes in cans for tomato products. Can Corp. churns out around one billion cans each year, but just 12% of the tin-plate it uses comes from US suppliers, Gatz told the Journal. 5 That could mean a can of vegetables currently priced at $2 might jump by as much as 30 cents. Drazen – Industry-wide, roughly 75% of the tin-plate used in the US is imported, primarily from Europe and Canada. In 2023 alone, nearly 1.5 million tons of tin-plate were brought into the country — a 37% increase from 2015, according to Census Bureau data. While Pittsburgh-based US Steel still produces tin-plate, it has scaled back operations in recent years. Cleveland-Cliffs, once another major domestic supplier, shuttered its tin-plate plant in Weirton, W. Va., in 2023. CEO Lourenco Goncalves blamed the closure on the lack of tariffs at the time — but says it's too late now. 'It's done. When the horse leaves the barn, the horse does not come back to the barn,' Goncalves told reporters last week. 5 US-based companies import the tin that is used to package food items. Iftikhar alam – Can producers estimate that the earlier 25% tariff, imposed in March, increased their costs by 7% to 8%. Doubling it, they say, could push that figure past 14%. Those higher costs will inevitably be passed on to food companies — and, ultimately, to consumers. Thomas Hunter, co-president of McCall Farms, a South Carolina-based producer of canned vegetables, said the company has already faced rising costs from labor and raw produce over the past five years. Now, the price of packaging could make canned foods a harder sell. 5 A recent move by the Trump administration to double tariffs on imported steel to 50% is expected to raise the price of tin-coated steel, a material critical to food cans. Getty Images 'The biggest concern we have is that these canned vegetables start getting to a point where the consumers are not willing to purchase them any more,' Hunter said. Cans are valued for their long shelf life and durability, particularly for staple foods. But if prices climb too high, manufacturers may consider switching to cheaper packaging. 'We're getting to the tipping point with many customers,' said Rick Huether, CEO of Maryland-based Independent Can Co., which makes decorative tins for snacks and specialty foods. 'You're just driving them to plastic packaging.' 5 The Trump administration says that tariffs are a key tool whose purpose is to spur reshoring of manufacturing. AFP via Getty Images The Consumer Brands Association warns that as many as 20,000 US jobs in food-can manufacturing could be at risk if consumers begin turning away from canned products due to rising prices. 'Domestic steel and aluminum production is imperative for our defense-industrial base,' White House spokesman Kush Desai told The Post in an emailed statement. 'The Trump administration is committed to reshoring manufacturing that's critical for our national and economic security while unleashing a full suite of supply-side reforms – including rapid deregulation, tax cuts, and unleashing American energy – to continue delivering economic relief for the American people.' Desai added that 'billions in steel and aluminum investment commitments and back-to-back, expectation-beating inflation reports prove we can accomplish both goals at the same time.'
Mint
14 hours ago
- Business
- Mint
The canned-food aisle is getting squeezed by rising steel tariffs
Soup, black beans and sliced pineapple could all soon become more expensive because of one particular reason: their cans. Cans used for food require tin-coated, ultrathin sheet steel made from molten iron. Not much is produced in the U.S., where domestic producers have been scaling back production for years. The Trump administration's new 50% duty on imported steel could increase store prices for items in steel cans by 9% to 15%, according to the Consumer Brands Association, a trade group whose members include Campbell's, Hormel Foods and Del Monte Foods. At that rate, the price of a can of vegetables costing $2 could increase by 18 cents to 30 cents. 'The American consumer is going to pay more for their cans," said Dan Dietrich, vice president for strategy at Trivium Packaging. President Trump on June 4 doubled the previous 25% tariffs on imported steel, aiming to increase demand for domestic steel by making cheaper, foreign-made metal more expensive. Tariffs are likely to drive up prices for domestic-made steel, too, as U.S. producers raise their own prices. Can manufacturers say they will continue to buy lots of imported tin-coated steel, known as tin-plate—because there isn't enough of it made in the U.S. to supply them. 'I would love nothing more than to allocate more purchases to the United States, but the overall production capacity is not there," said Robert Gatz, general manager of Can Corp. of America, a Pennsylvania-based maker of food cans. Can Corp. produces about one billion food cans annually and specializes in cans for tomatoes. Gatz said the company buys about 12% of its tin-plate from domestic steel mills. Can manufacturers estimate that about three-quarters of tin-plate consumed in the U.S. is foreign-made, with much of it coming from Europe and Canada. Nearly 1.5 million tons of tin-plate were imported last year, about 37% more than in 2015, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. Tin-plate is made with steel derived from molten iron, but most steel in the U.S. is now made from melted scrap, and that doesn't measure up to the can industry's exacting quality standards. Pittsburgh-based U.S. Steel continues to produce tin-plate but has reduced its production volume in recent years. Cleveland-Cliffs, another major steelmaker, no longer produces tin-plate after closing its Weirton, mill last year. Cliffs Chief Executive Lourenco Goncalves said he has no plans to restart Weirton, though he had blamed the plant's closing on a lack of tariffs on imported tin-plate. 'It's done. When the horse leaves the barn, the horse does not come back to the barn," Goncalves told reporters last week. The 25% steel tariff imposed in March by the Trump administration raised the cost of producing filled cans by about 7% to 8%, can companies said. They anticipate that doubling the duty on tin-plate to 50% will boost costs by at least 14%. That higher price will hit canned-food producers. South Carolina-based McCall Farms sells canned green beans, carrots, spinach, sweet potatoes and other vegetables grown in the South. Rising expenses for labor and raw vegetables have already driven up production costs over the past five years, said Thomas Hunter, McCall Farms' co-president. 'The biggest concern we have is that these canned vegetables start getting to a point where the consumers are not willing to purchase them any more," Hunter said. Cans are prized for enabling long shelf lives for vegetables, fruit and other ready-to-eat foods, able to keep for years without spoiling. But can manufacturers worry that higher can costs will discourage their use. Cans on a conveyor belt. Can companies say not enough tin-coated steel is made in the U.S. to meet their needs. The Consumer Brands Association said as many as 20,000 U.S. jobs in food-can manufacturing could be at risk if the tariff on tin-plate causes consumers to shy away from higher-priced canned goods and food companies migrate to alternative packaging. 'We're getting to the tipping point with many customers," said Rick Huether, CEO of Maryland-based Independent Can Co., which produces decorative and specialty cans used for cookies, candy, coffee and popcorn. 'You're just driving them to plastic packaging." Write to Bob Tita at
Euronews
5 days ago
- Business
- Euronews
Procter & Gamble to cut 7,000 jobs as tariff pressure hits
The job cuts, announced at the Deutsche Bank Consumer Conference in Paris on Thursday, make up about 15% of its current non-manufacturing workforce, chief financial officer, Andre Schulten, said. 'This restructuring program is an important step toward ensuring our ability to deliver our long-term algorithm over the coming two to three years,' Schulten said. 'It does not, however, remove the near-term challenges that we currently face.' Procter & Gamble, based in Cincinnati, had approximately 108,000 employees worldwide in June 2024. The cuts are part of a broader restructuring program. Procter & Gamble will also end sales of some of its products in certain markets. Procter & Gamble said it will provide more details about that in July. In April, Procter & Gamble noted during a conference call that the biggest US tariff impacts were coming from raw and packaging materials and some finished product sourced from China. The company said that it would be looking at sourcing options and productivity improvements to mitigate the tariff impact, but that it may also have to raise prices on some products. That same month, the Consumer Brands Association, which represents big food companies like Coca-Cola and General Mills as well as consumer product makers like Procter & Gamble, warned that although its businesses make most of their goods in the US, they now face tariffs on critical ingredients — like wood pulp for toilet paper or cinnamon — that must be imported because of domestic scarcity.
Washington Post
23-04-2025
- Health
- Washington Post
What the science says about artificial food dyes
The Department of Health and Human Services said Tuesday that it plans to phase out petroleum-based food dyes from the nation's food supply. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the health secretary, has called the dyes 'poison' and long blamed artificial additives for chronic disease and illness in the United States. Companies add dyes to food, such as candy, cereals, drinks and snacks, for brighter, attractive colors. The dyes are either natural, such as red beet juice, or synthetic. 'The ingredients used in America's food supply have been rigorously studied following an objective science and risk-based evaluation process and have been demonstrated to be safe,' Melissa Hockstad, the chief executive of Consumer Brands Association, a food industry trade group, said in a statement. 'Removing these safe ingredients does not change the consumer packaged goods industry's commitment to providing safe, affordable and convenient product choices to consumers.' But consumer advocacy groups said there is sufficient evidence that the dyes may cause some harm to some children. They argue that artificial dyes are not worth the potential risk given their lack of nutritional value. 'From the vantage point of consumers, it boils down to why do we want to take a chance on these things when it comes to the health of our children?' said Brian Ronholm, director of food policy at Consumer Reports. 'Even if it doesn't technically point to causing cancer, there is risk involved in terms of how it impacts neurobehavior in children.' The Washington Post spoke with food scientists and nutrition experts to answer questions about the synthetic dyes in food. In January, under the Biden administration, the FDA banned red dye No. 3 in food. The dye, which gives food a cherry-red color, has been linked to cancer in animals. In 1990, the agency banned the use of the red dye in cosmetics because preliminary animal research suggested a link to thyroid cancer. The FDA has said there's no evidence that ingesting the coloring causes cancer in humans. The agency said its decision was based on a federal law prohibiting additives found to cause cancer in humans or animals at any dose. In some studies, synthetic food dyes used in the U.S. have been associated with hyperactivity and behavioral effects in children. In 2021, the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment in California published a review of seven food dyes such as red dye No. 3, red dye No. 40 and yellow dye No. 5. The review concluded that the consumption of food with added dyes is associated with hyperactivity, restlessness and other neurobehavioral problems in some children, though sensitivity can vary. 'They're not needed,' said Alyson Mitchell, a professor and food chemist at the University of California at Davis and a co-author of the California review. 'They don't present the consumer with any benefit. Only a potential risk.' But some researchers disagreed on whether the existing evidence is conclusive and said it's hard to isolate the effect of one ingredient or additive because we eat a combination of various foods every day. Research hasn't found a plausible mechanism for how synthetic dyes could affect the behavior of children, and the findings tend to be based on parents' observations 'rather than some strict criteria that wouldn't be subject to bias,' said Ronald Kleinman, physician-in-chief emeritus at Mass General Hospital for Children. 'This is an example where we really don't have any evidence that the natural food colorings are really any better than the synthetic food colorings,' Kleinman said. 'There are so many other things for us to consider in the general health of children that food colorings are way down on the list.' The FDA has previously said it would examine potential effects of color additives on children's behavior. The 'totality of scientific evidence' indicates that most children do not suffer adverse effects when consuming food colored with the dyes, but some evidence suggests that certain children may be sensitive to them, it said. The evidence is 'complicated' and 'mixed,' said Marion Nestle, an emeritus professor of nutrition, food studies and public health at New York University. But, she said, 'these dyes are unnecessary.' 'If there's any question at all about whether they might be harmful,' Nestle said, 'let's get rid of them.' California decided to ban certain artificial dyes in food served in public schools. And in West Virginia, Gov. Patrick Morrisey (R) signed legislation last month banning foods containing seven synthetic dyes in schools from Aug. 1 and foods with the dyes in the state starting in 2028. Artificial and natural dyes are listed on the ingredients label. Checking the label is a 'reasonable step' for someone who's concerned about attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder-like symptoms, or their irritability and mood, said Joel Nigg, a professor of psychiatry at Oregon Health & Science University. A person who reduces their consumption of foods with artificial dyes 'should notice the benefit within a few days,' if it is a factor, he said. 'Food dyes are not a major contributor to ADHD,' Nigg said. 'But they do play a small role in worsening attention and behavior in children.' For home cooking and baking, natural dyes — extracts from fruits and vegetables — can add color. The extracts for natural dyes have thousands of compounds and often different flavor profiles, which makes them problematic, Mitchell said. Natural dyes are more challenging for manufacturers to use, and it's not as simple as replacing artificial with natural alternatives. 'Natural does not imply safety,' Mitchell said. 'I have some concerns that we might be replacing one problem with another problem.' 'I think we need to recalibrate our expectation of color in food,' she said. Marlene Cimons contributed to this report.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Good Job, MAHA
Unless you make a habit of closely reading nutrition labels—or watching Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s YouTube channel—you might not realize just how much tartrazine you're ingesting. Kennedy, the U.S. health secretary, is fixated with the chemical, otherwise known as Yellow 5. Many Americans are unknowingly eating this and other 'poisons,' he warned in a YouTube video posted last fall. The lemon-yellow hue tints junk food such as Skittles and Mountain Dew; it's also in chicken bouillon, pancake mix, and pickles. In Europe, products containing Yellow 5 are branded with a label warning that it 'may have an adverse effect on activity and attention in children.' But for two decades, the FDA has declined to ban the dye, citing inconclusive evidence. Today, the FDA announced that it will move to rid the food supply of Yellow 5 and several other synthetic food dyes, such as Red 40, Blue 1, and Green 3, by the end of next year. It's not a ban: Kennedy, who oversees the FDA, said in a press conference that he has reached an 'understanding' with the food companies to phase out these dyes, although he provided scant details on the specifics. (An HHS spokesperson didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.) Today's action was, in many ways, a win for Kennedy. Democrats have long grumbled that food companies should not be foisting on Americans chemical-laden versions of products such as Doritos and Froot Loops while selling additive-free versions in other countries. RFK Jr.'s 'Make America Healthy Again' movement has brought Republicans onboard too. In October 2023, California became the first state to ban an artificial food dye, Red 3; it has since been joined by West Virginia, which banned seven dyes this March. In 2025, more than half of the 50 states have introduced similar bills, in some cases specifically shouting out MAHA. Cracking down on food dyes is a refreshingly modest, incremental step toward reforming America's food system. There is real evidence that these dyes are harmful, particularly to children. A review from 2021 found that 'synthetic food dyes are associated with adverse neurobehavioral effects, such as inattentiveness, hyperactivity and restlessness in sensitive children.' Many children aren't affected by these attention concerns, to be clear, and it's also difficult to pinpoint one dye as worse than another, because they are often studied together. But, as opponents to the dyes have argued, subjecting any proportion of kids to neurobehavioral issues doesn't seem worth having bright-red Skittles. Moving away from synthetic dyes would be a monumental change for food companies, but they have a reason to cheer for today's news as well. Since states began taking up the food-dye issue in earnest, the industry has complained that differing state laws for food dyes would make it more difficult to run their businesses. In a statement, the Consumer Brands Association, which represents companies such as Nestlé, PepsiCo, and General Mills, said that a 'state patchwork of differing laws creates confusion for consumers, limits access to everyday goods, deters innovation, and increases costs at the grocery store,' and the group maintained that the additives it uses 'have been rigorously studied following an objective science and risk-based evaluation process and have been demonstrated to be safe.' The industry is surely glad to hear that the FDA, at least right now, is not implementing a ban for common dyes such as Yellow 5. 'I believe in love,' FDA Commissioner Marty Makary said today. 'And let's start in a friendly way and see if we can do this without any statutory or regulatory changes.' He added that food companies can use natural dyes such as beet, carrot, and watermelon juice to color their products instead of artificial dyes. If Kennedy's purported understanding with the food industry falls through and companies balk, Kennedy's and Makary's jobs will become trickier. The FDA has historically taken years to formally ban just a single food ingredient. It took nearly three years to act on a petition to ban Red 3 in food, despite the fact that scientific studies showed decades ago that the dye causes cancer in rats. At least some of that slowness is by design. Regulators need to document legitimate harm that is caused by these products, and that process can take years. The FDA's job also has become even more difficult in light of the mass layoffs that have played out in the early days of Donald Trump's second presidency. Among the 89 staffers from the FDA's food center are nine people specifically tasked with reviewing additives in foods, according to Jim Jones, a former head of the center. (He resigned in protest of the layoffs in February.) Either way, the speed with which the food industry phases out these dyes should not be seen as the true measure of just how successful RFK Jr. is. Cracking down on food dyes has become a major plank of the MAHA platform, but the chemicals are nowhere near the biggest impediment to making America healthy again. The true test will be how Kennedy and his movement deals with much more pressing, and intractable, challenges in the American diet. Even without synthetic dyes in our foods, Americans will still overwhelmingly be eating ultra-processed foods loaded with excess sodium and sugar. This doesn't seem to be a point lost on Kennedy, who issued a stern warning today that 'sugar is poison.' And yet, he hasn't articulated any plans to eliminate the ingredient from our food. Phasing out food dyes is easy, at least in comparison with tackling these bigger issues. The real test of the MAHA movement will be not whether it can get the red dye out of Skittles, but whether it can persuade Americans to forgo the Skittles altogether. Article originally published at The Atlantic
