Tea Prices Are Rising and Ottawa’s to Blame

Canada’s 25 percent tea tariff is raising food prices and hurting developing countries. There’s no good reason to keep it.

A farmer picks tea leaves in Taiwan's Yilan County on March 25, 2025. (Cheng Yu-chen/AFP) via Getty Images)

Commentary

When Prime Minister Mark Carney quietly lifted most food-related countervailing tariffs (import taxes designed to counter foreign subsidies) on May 7, few Canadians noticed.