Kraft Heinz has expressed “disappointment” over comments from Justin Trudeau that suggested ketchup could be a target for tariffs in a trade dispute with the US.
Trudeau recently raised the idea of imposing counter-measures on US-made products in retaliation to any possible tariffs from the US, highlighting the focus on items with Canadian alternatives, Bloomberg reported.
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President Trump has pledged import duties of 25% on Canada and Mexico and said last week he planned to implement the measures on 1 February.
Talking to reporters last week, according to CBC, Trudeau was quoted as saying: “That’s why we will look, as we have in the past, at things that have replacements for Canadian consumers that wouldn’t be tariffed.”
The outgoing Canadian Prime Minister reportedly reflected on a 2018 dispute with the US during President Trump’s first term. “The example from last time was Heinz’s ketchup being replaced by French’s ketchup because French’s was still using Canadian tomatoes in its ketchup,” Trudeau reportedly said.
In a statement, Kraft Heinz said it makes Heinz ketchup in Canada using locally grown tomatoes.
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By GlobalData“Kraft Heinz Canada is deeply disappointed that Prime Minister Trudeau has made misleading statements that Heinz ketchup is not made in Canada and that it may be a potential target for counter-vailing tariffs,” the US-based food giant said.
The company resumed Canadian production of Heinz ketchup in 2020 after a five-year hiatus.
“We were resolute in our decision to bring the production of Heinz ketchup back to Canada in 2020 and are proud that Heinz ketchup is made in Canada, by Canadians, using Canadian tomatoes,” Kraft Heinz added.
