{"id":835495,"date":"2026-07-30T08:27:19","date_gmt":"2026-07-30T08:27:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/835495\/"},"modified":"2026-07-30T08:27:19","modified_gmt":"2026-07-30T08:27:19","slug":"trumps-tariffs-take-aim-at-canadian-whey-during-global-shortage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/835495\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump\u2019s tariffs take aim at Canadian whey during global shortage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Open this photo in gallery:<\/a><\/p>\n

Whey protein powder has become one of the most sought-after ingredients in the U.S. According to reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, American suppliers of whey are sold out of stocks for the remainder of the year.Brandon Bell\/Getty Images<\/p>\n

Since U.S. President Donald Trump took office last year, his tariffs<\/a> have gone after steel, aluminum and autos. Next up: Protein.<\/p>\n

When the Trump administration last week announced coming 50-per-cent tariffs on hundreds of Canadian products, the list included a range of proteins, such as whey and other dairy proteins. The White House cited specific \u201cdiscriminatory\u201d rules within Canada\u2019s supply-management system for the duties, which would take effect Aug. 19.<\/p>\n

This batch of tariffs would affect more than US$200-million worth of protein exports to the U.S., the majority dairy-based products.<\/p>\n

The full list of Canadian goods targeted by Trump\u2019s new 50% tariffs, and what Canada is doing about it<\/a><\/p>\n

It\u2019s just the latest example of how the U.S. has taken exception to Canada\u2019s supply-management system, a model that curtails production and imports to keep national prices above manufacturing costs.<\/p>\n

These measures would affect certain Canadian dairy processors, which U.S. dairy exporters have accused of operating at an unfair advantage in global markets. Canada\u2019s three largest dairy processors \u2013 Agropur Inc., Saputo Inc. and Lactalis Canada \u2013 all have ingredient divisions producing and distributing protein products. <\/p>\n

But in targeting dairy protein, Mr. Trump is also heaping extra costs onto massively popular products at the centre of a cultural craze.<\/p>\n

There is a global demand boom for protein, driven in large part by \u201cmanosphere\u201d fitness influencers and the introduction of weight loss drugs. Protein supply has been unable to keep up with this demand. According to reports from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, American suppliers of whey are sold out of stocks<\/a> for the remainder of the year, and prices of high-protein whey have climbed 162 per cent since the start of 2025.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Most popular dairy proteins \u2013 including whey \u2013 are byproducts of the production of cheese and were, until recently, affordable, readily available products that could be used as supplements in drinks or used to fortify low-protein foods, said Hrvoje Fabek, a professor of food science at the University of Guelph. <\/p>\n

In fact, the supply of dairy solids \u2013 which includes a wide range of dairy proteins made during the processing of milk \u2013 has at times outpaced global demand, driving trade disputes between Canada and the U.S. <\/p>\n

After decades of stable growth for dairy proteins, the global market had started to plateau in 2021 as China shored up its national production and its major supplier \u2013 New Zealand \u2013 encroached on U.S. market share in other countries. <\/p>\n

The U.S. Dairy Export Council alleged that Canadian producers were making matters worse by dumping low-priced dairy proteins into export markets, including the U.S.<\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s processors were at an unfair advantage because the supply-management system meant they could sell these products at cheap, uncompetitive rates, alleged the U.S. industry in arguments submitted to the U.S. International Trade Tribunal.<\/p>\n

White House has beef with Canada\u2019s dairy import rules. Does the EU have a better deal?<\/a><\/p>\n

Under the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, Canada agreed to limit tariff-free exports of skim milk powder, milk protein concentrate and infant formula. But the U.S. Dairy Export Council alleged that processors had simply started adding these proteins to different products, effectively disguising the byproduct as another item in order to bypass export restrictions. <\/p>\n

\u201cCanada has used loopholes to evade USMCA disciplines on dairy protein exports,\u201d said a statement from the U.S. Dairy Export Council shortly after Mr. Trump announced the tariffs this month. <\/p>\n

But the latest stage of this dispute is taking effect in a market very different to when the dispute first began. <\/p>\n

The U.S. and Canada are in the midst of a global protein craze in large part because of weight-loss drugs like Ozempic, said Prof. Fabek. These medications can result in a loss of muscle mass. Doctors and dietitians are recommending high-protein diets as a way to retain lean muscle mass. And dairy proteins are considered \u201ccomplete\u201d: They have the full chain of amino acids, in the correct order, and they are fully digestible. <\/p>\n

Protein has also been politicized \u2013 tied to resurgent conservative ideas about food and gender, said Elaine Power, a dietitian and professor at Queen\u2019s University where she studies food and health. <\/p>\n

The rise of conservative politics and the delegitimization of left-wing ideology have shifted consumer preferences. Online influencers are pushing diets high in animal proteins, from red meat to dairy. <\/p>\n

Opinion: Why you should stop obsessing over how much protein is in your diet<\/a><\/p>\n

The trend has been reflected in the Trump administration\u2019s policies on health and nutrition, she added, pointing to the U.S.\u2019s updated dietary guidelines. <\/p>\n

In January, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. flipped the national food pyramid upside down \u2013 recommending a diet high in protein, specifically red meat and dairy. The new recommendations almost doubled the protein intake to a range of 1.2 to 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight. <\/p>\n

There are strong commercial interests behind the gendered fitness and wellness movement, said Emma Grundtvig Gram, a public-health researcher at the University of Copenhagen who has studied the effects of male fitness influencers on consumer trends. <\/p>\n

A number of the high-profile fitness influencers who were key proponents of the Trump administration have founded, owned or advertised on behalf of supplement companies that sell dairy-based protein powders. A prominent example is Onnit Labs Inc., co-founded by Joe Rogan, a popular and controversial podcast host who endorsed Mr. Trump shortly before the 2024 U.S. election. (Mr. Rogan\u2019s support for Mr. Trump has wavered since this endorsement.)<\/p>\n

Supplies of whey protein, which used to be part of a niche market, mostly for athletes and body builders, have tightened as mainstream corporate actors also seek to capitalize on the trend, said Prof. Power. <\/p>\n

Protein has gone mainstream. But how much do you actually need?<\/a><\/p>\n

The number of high-protein shakes and drinks on the market rose by 122 per cent between 2020 and 2024, according to a report<\/a> from Innova Market Insights, and brands from Starbucks to Buffalo Wild Wings have launched high-protein lines. The latter introduced an \u201cespresso proteini\u201d in March \u2013 a beverage with 10 grams of protein and a Buffalo Dry Rub rim. <\/p>\n

The average U.S. supermarket now stocks upward of 38,000 products that advertise protein content, according to the Associated Press, citing a market firm research report from NielsenIQ. <\/p>\n

Large food and beverage companies moving into this space have been bad news for those who have been marketing whey protein from before the protein-maxxing moment. For example, producer of high-protein baking and beverage mixes, HelloAmino, was cut off from its supplies of whey protein at the beginning of May. The Alberta-based company had been marketing high-protein products since before the current trend took off, said founder Aelie Swift. <\/p>\n

\u201cLiterally no one wants to do business with us,\u201d she said. \u201cIf you\u2019re not ordering a million-dollar truckload, you can\u2019t even get a hold of someone.\u201d <\/p>\n

HelloAmino has pivoted to a different dairy protein formulation, but it is costing them 50-per-cent more to get supplies. <\/p>\n

And whey producers will not be able to scale up production quickly. <\/p>\n

Because whey is a byproduct of cheese production, a processor cannot increase production without the risk of flooding the cheese market, said Prof. Fabek. Processors will instead be focusing on ways to get more protein from every litre of liquid milk, but these investments take time. <\/p>\n

\u201cSince every kilogram of cheese generates a certain amount of liquid whey, there needs to be a demand for both, and that\u2019s where you\u2019re finding a big issue and a big challenge.\u201d <\/p>\n

With files from Jason Kirby<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Open this photo in gallery: Whey protein powder has become one of the most sought-after ingredients in the…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":835496,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[43,6347,44,41,39,42,40],"class_list":["post-835495","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-headlines","tag-headlines","tag-ne-i","tag-news","tag-top-news","tag-top-stories","tag-topnews","tag-topstories"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/835495","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=835495"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/835495\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/835496"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=835495"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=835495"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=835495"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}