The exemptions will also likely apply to countries that haven\u2019t even made trade deals with the U.S. In that way, they would go beyond a September executive order in which Trump directed Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer to determine exemptions for a wide variety of foods and other products from countries that had negotiated a more favorable trade rate with the U.S.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Lutnick, 64, has been advocating for food exemptions due to their current cost, according to the Times.<\/p>\n
Neither the White House nor the Commerce Department immediately responded to a request for comment from the Daily Beast.<\/p>\n
![\"Howard](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/VFHUGOYSYZDNRCEOZIO2IU45ZM.jpg\")
Howard Lutnick has been advocating for certain food exemptions, according to a report by the New York Times. Andrew Harnik\/Getty Images <\/p>\n
White House spokesperson Kush Desai told the Times in a statement that \u201cthe Trump administration is committed to pursuing a nimble, nuanced, and multifaceted strategy on trade and tariffs.\u201d<\/p>\n
A \u201ccritical mass\u201d of trade agreements have been made since April, allowing for the exemptions, a Trump administration official added. New agreements with Argentina, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Ecuador were announced Thursday.<\/p>\n
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, 63, revealed to Fox News Wednesday that coffee and bananas would also be exempt.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
\u201cThat will bring the prices down very quickly,\u201d he claimed, adding that the Trump administration \u201cinherited this affordability mess.\u201d <\/p>\n
Trump, who has insisted that prices are \u201cway down,\u201d has been pressed about affordability, especially after he tried to claim<\/a> that Walmart\u2019s Thanksgiving Dinner was cheaper this year\u2014without mentioning that the package contains fewer items.<\/p>\n Fox News host Laura Ingraham also pointed out <\/a>the issue of affordability during an interview aired Tuesday. And Trump, 79, was forced to respond<\/a> on Fox last week to a longtime supporter\u2019s dissatisfied message.<\/p>\n The administration\u2019s exemption plans come after Democrats won gubernatorial races last week in New Jersey and Virginia\u2014as well as the mayoral race in New York\u2014after campaigning heavily on the issue of affordability.<\/p>\n