Trump’s tariffs threaten the US apple water supply chain
Are a small number of foods Most Americans are apple, but the reality is that some of Apple’s favorite products are not actually made in the United States. Apple juice, one of the main perennial dining, is a prominent example. The overwhelming majority of American apple drinks comes from countries such as China, and the Trump administration’s electric tariff policies are now changing the market, and potentially make dragon -based drinks more expensive or harder.
“The price of fruit juice is rising,” says Christopher Grolach, executive director of the Apple US Association, a business group representing the domestic Apple industry. Grolach estimates that the wholesale cost of apple water concentrate this year has increased by 33 percent compared to 2024 – and he expects the trend to continue. Higher costs affect more than simple apple juice, because concentrate is a major substance in a wide range of fruit juice mixtures such as berries and pears and is also used as a sweetener in a variety of children’s products, including baby food.
The Trump administration’s supportive policies have generally enhanced the World Trade System. But the most influence has been in Chinese imports so far, which is now at a 145 % tariff. The move has increased consumer prices and has disrupted the supply chains of various products from baby gear equipment to Christmas decorations to sexual toys. While products show relatively small sector exports to the United States in general, there are certain types of food and drinks made from the country, such as garlic, seafood and yes, apple juice. While apples are not typically associated with China, farmers in the 1980s began investing in the crop because they sought ways to diversify their income.
The United States has a lot of Apple’s domestic farms, but the industry is strongly focused on selling fresh fruits that are typically more profitable. Every year, the United States exports about 16 million gallons of apple juice, but imports 430 million gallons, Grolach says. China has been the main place for years that the United States produced its apple juice, but Türkiye has recently appeared as a close competitor. The company accounted for 39 % of the United States’s centralized apple water imports last year, while China accounted for 31 %.
USDA data suggests that Trump’s tariffs have made a dramatic change in the United States to buy apple water concentrate from Türkiye. So far this year, Americans have imported about 92 million liters of illegal apple juice from China compared to 29 million liters of Türkiye. China made fruit juice in January as importers to buy purchases before the tariffs started. Sales have now declined, while Türkiye is on the rise. For the week of April 25, Türkiye exported more than twice more than apple water to the United States as it did in China’s mainland.
