美国政府周一表示，由于谈判未能达成避免加征关税的协议，将即刻对大部分源自墨西哥的新鲜番茄征收17%的关税。
支持者表示，进口税将有助于重建日渐萎缩的美国番茄产业，并确保美国民众食用的农产品源自本土种植。根据佛罗里达番茄交易所的数据，墨西哥目前占美国番茄市场约70%的份额，而二十年前这一比例仅为30%。
该行业协会执行副总裁罗伯特·根特尔（Robert Guenther）表示，这项关税对“美国番茄种植者和美国农业而言是一项重大利好”。
然而，反对者称，进口税将导致美国消费者购买番茄的成本大幅增加。墨西哥的温室专用于培育藤蔓自然成熟的番茄，而佛罗里达州的番茄则通常在田间种植，且在未完全成熟时便被采摘。
代表墨西哥番茄进口商的美洲新鲜农产品协会主席兰斯·荣格迈尔（Lance Jungmeyer）表示：“就整个行业而言，我们感到遗憾的是，美国消费者将不得不为他们钟爱的番茄品种承担‘番茄税’或关税，比如藤蔓番茄、葡萄番茄、罗马番茄、鸡尾酒番茄和其他特色品种，同时，可选范围也将缩小。”
亚利桑那州立大学（Arizona State University）莫里森农业商业学院教授蒂姆·理查兹（Tim Richards）表示，受17%关税的影响，美国市场上番茄的零售价格或将上涨约8.5%。
右翼政策研究机构American Action Forum的贸易政策分析师雅各布·延森（Jacob Jensen）表示，对于高度依赖墨西哥番茄的地区而言，由于替代供应难寻，价格涨幅或将接近10%，而美国其他地区的价格涨幅可能接近6%。
这项关税源于美国长期以来对墨西哥番茄出口的不满，与唐纳德·特朗普上周六宣布的对墨西哥及欧盟制造的产品加征30%基础关税的举措无关。
美国商务部在4月下旬表示，将退出2019年与墨西哥首次达成的一项协议，该协议旨在化解墨西哥被指控以人为压低价格的方式向美国出口番茄（此做法被称作“倾销”）的争端。
作为协议的一部分，墨西哥必须以最低限价出售番茄，并遵守其他规则。自那以后，尽管该协议定期接受审查，但双方总能达成协议，从而避免加征关税。
在宣布退出《对墨西哥新鲜番茄的反倾销暂停协议》时，商务部表示，该部门收到了“大量来自美国番茄种植者的评论”，他们期望能获得更有力的保护，以抵御墨西哥番茄带来的冲击。
商务部长霍华德·卢特尼克（Howard Lutnick）在一份声明中表示：“墨西哥仍然是我们最重要的盟友之一，但长期以来，美国农民始终遭受不公平贸易行为的侵害，导致番茄等农产品价格被压低。这种情况自今日起将终结。此次规则调整与特朗普总统针对墨西哥制定的贸易政策及方针相契合。”
但包括美国商会（U.S. Chamber of Commerce）和全美餐馆协会（National Restaurant Association）在内的其他组织曾呼吁商务部与墨西哥达成协议。得克萨斯州州长格雷格·阿博特（Greg Abbott，共和党）和亚利桑那州州长凯蒂·霍布斯（Katie Hobbs，民主党）也曾敦促商务部维持现行番茄协议。
上周，美国商会和其他30个商业团体联名致信卢特尼克，称美国企业为将墨西哥进口番茄配送至全美各个社区，雇佣了5万名工人并创造了83亿美元的经济效益。
信中写道：“我们担心，在企业界已然面临巨大贸易不确定性的当下，退出该协议可能引发贸易伙伴针对其他大宗商品和农作物采取报复性举措，进而给美国企业和消费者带来更多困境。”（财富中文网）
译者：中慧言-王芳
The U.S. government said Monday it is immediately placing a 17% duty on most fresh Mexican tomatoes after negotiations ended without an agreement to avert the tariff.
Proponents said the import tax will help rebuild the shrinking U.S. tomato industry and ensure that produce eaten in the U.S. is also grown there. Mexico currently supplies around 70% of the U.S. tomato market, up from 30% two decades ago, according to the Florida Tomato Exchange.
Robert Guenther, the trade group’s executive vice president, said the duty was “an enormous victory for American tomato farmers and American agriculture.”
But opponents said the import tax will make tomatoes more expensive for U.S. consumers. Mexican greenhouses specialize in vine-ripened tomatoes, while Florida tomatoes are typically grown in fields and picked green.
“As an industry, we are saddened that American consumers will have to pay a tomato tax, or duty, for a reduced selection of the tomatoes they prefer, such as tomatoes on the vine, grape tomatoes, Romas, cocktail tomatoes and other specialty varieties,” said Lance Jungmeyer, president of the Fresh Produce Association of the Americas, which represents importers of Mexican tomatoes.
Tim Richards, a professor at the Morrison School of Agribusiness at Arizona State University, said U.S. retail prices for tomatoes will likely rise around 8.5% with a 17% duty.
Jacob Jensen, a trade policy analyst at the American Action Forum, a right-leaning policy institute, said areas with a higher reliance on Mexican tomatoes could see price increases close to 10%, since it will be more difficult to replace that supply, while other parts of the U.S. could see price increases closer to 6%.
The duty stems from a longstanding U.S. complaint about Mexico’s tomato exports and is separate from the 30% base tariff on products made in Mexico and the European Union that President Donald Trump announced on Saturday.
The Commerce Department said in late April that it was withdrawing from a deal it first reached with Mexico in 2019 to settle allegations the country was exporting tomatoes to the U.S. at artificially low prices, a practice known as dumping.
As part of the deal, Mexico had to sell its tomatoes at a minimum price and abide by other rules. Since then, the agreement has been subject to periodic reviews, but the two sides always reached an agreement that avoided duties.
In announcing its withdrawal from the Tomato Suspension Agreement, the Commerce Department said it had been “flooded with comments” from U.S. tomato growers who wanted better protection from Mexican goods.
“Mexico remains one of our greatest allies, but for far too long our farmers have been crushed by unfair trade practices that undercut pricing on produce like tomatoes. That ends today,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said in a statement. “This rule change is in line with President Trump’s trade policies and approach with Mexico.”
But others, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Restaurant Association, had called on the Commerce Department to reach an agreement with Mexico. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, and Arizona Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, had also urged the Commerce Department to leave the current tomato agreement in place.
In a letter sent to Lutnick last week, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and 30 other business groups said U.S. companies employ 50,000 workers and generate $8.3 billion in economic benefits moving tomatoes from Mexico into communities across the country.
“We are concerned that withdrawing from the agreement – at a time when the business community is already navigating significant trade uncertainty – could lead to retaliatory actions by our trading partners against other commodities and crops that could create further hardship for U.S. businesses and consumers,” the letter said.