{"id":329711,"date":"2025-12-07T05:48:07","date_gmt":"2025-12-07T05:48:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/329711\/"},"modified":"2025-12-07T05:48:07","modified_gmt":"2025-12-07T05:48:07","slug":"u-s-tariffs-hurting-new-brunswick-craft-businesses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/329711\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. tariffs hurting New Brunswick craft businesses"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Text<\/p>\n

Listen to this article<\/p>\n

Estimated 3 minutes<\/p>\n

The audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a technology based on artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n

Rothesay’s Lincoln Bell says sourcing ingredients amidst tariffs imposed by the United States has become a strain on his honey and beeswax product business.<\/p>\n

And he’s not alone.<\/p>\n

Bell, who owns Sweetie Bees, is just one of many small business owners who say they’ve had to adapt to higher costs<\/a>.<\/p>\n

He said his ingredient supplier is an American operation, but their higher prices have him looking for a cheaper source.<\/p>\n

“[My supplier was] acquired by an American company, forcing them to now raise their prices to almost double, sometimes triple, for some of the key ingredients I need to make my products,” he said.<\/p>\n

Failing to find a cheaper option may lead to an increase in the cost of the finished product, he said, making it more expensive for his customers.<\/p>\n

“I’ve been trying to keep my prices down the same, but I am definitely looking at the option that if I can’t start getting them cheaper again, there is always a chance that prices may increase.”<\/p>\n

\"AKaren Larter says she’s started to source Canadian ingredients to sustain her products amidst the tariff situation. (Ian Curran\/CBC)<\/p>\n

Karen Larter owns Lavender Moon Farm in Malden, which also sells organic products. She echoed Bell’s concerns as her ingredient supplier was based in California.<\/p>\n

“As a small business owner, it’s tough,” Larter said, who has been farming for six years.<\/p>\n

“I’ve had to outsource, find another location for my cocoa butter and my coconut oil, so those for sure have been impacting me with the tariffs,” she said.<\/p>\n

After some research, Larter was able to find a cheaper Toronto-based alternative. She encourages businesses to shop and support local in these times.<\/p>\n

She said switching to a Canadian supplier was an important decision for her.<\/p>\n

“When a small business owner like myself sees something go up 90 per cent, it’s really hard to keep creating the product and selling it … and people have a certain price point that they’re not willing to surpass.”<\/p>\n

\"TwoRaneem Hammam, left, and Razan Hammam make jewelry using stones. (Ian Curran\/CBC)<\/p>\n

Razan Hammam, who owns a small jewelry business, said she’s had to use some cheaper spacer beads to keep cost low, but that change compromises her product’s quality.<\/p>\n

“It makes me feel sad because I like people getting our stuff, and liking them, and them looking good,” said Hammam. “So when we have to do that, it’s not that good.”<\/p>\n

Oromocto woodcarver Gary Crosby said he’s stopped shipping his products to the United States due to tariff-related issues.<\/p>\n

“It’s just too much paperwork and there’s too much confusion at the border, it may never get to the customer,” he said.<\/p>\n

\"AWoodcarver Gary Crosby says he began exploring other markets more when the United States imposed tariffs on his products. (Ian Curran\/CBC)<\/p>\n

He’s already found other markets to cover his lost businesses, he said.<\/p>\n

“I would love to go back to the States and send it back to our customers there, but unfortunately … until this is over, it is what it is.” <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Listen to this article Estimated 3 minutes The audio version of this article is generated by text-to-speech, a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":329712,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[45,49,48,46],"class_list":{"0":"post-329711","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy","8":"tag-business","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-canada","11":"tag-economy"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329711","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=329711"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/329711\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/329712"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=329711"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=329711"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=329711"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}