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US President Donald Trump announced a ban on a range of Canadian alcoholic beverages and dairy products yesterday (8 September 2026), the latest move in an ongoing trade war between the North American countries.

The White House released several executive orders outlining the scope of the import bans, which go beyond food and beverage – restrictions on certain motor vehicles are also included. The import ban will take effect from 29 September 2026.

Trump said that the moves address “Canada’s increased discrimination against US commerce,” referring to the retaliatory tariffs placed on US goods, including steel, dairy and agricultural equipment, which came into effect this week.

Canada’s dollar-for-dollar retaliatory tariffs – which are as high as 50% for some products including certain milk and cream and whey products – apply to nearly $20 billion of US goods. They responded to the US’ move to impose 50% tariffs on $20 billion of Canadian goods in August, with individual product rates based on the matching US rates for the same goods.

The US and Canada were undergoing trade review talks this summer with hopes to agree on a deal, but negotiations fell through last month.

Canadian food and beverage products subject to the full ban and excluded from importation into the US include whey protein products, cane molasses, non-alcoholic beer and a broad range of wine and spirit products including rum, vodka and bitters.

Meanwhile, additional products will be hit with a higher 50% import tariff under the new executive orders, including a wide variety of fresh cheese products.

The White House said the measures aim to ‘restore reciprocity in our bilateral trade relationships and protect the economic prosperity and security’ of US citizens and businesses, stating that the tariffs will incentivise companies to reshore jobs and production lines back to American soil.

It gave the example of Chobani investing $1.2 billion into a Pennsylvania dairy production line, announced last week as part of its $925 million deal with Keurig Dr Pepper.

However, the ban and increased tariffs targeting key Canadian dairy segments puts further strain on the historically close relationship between the two neighbouring countries, increasing concerns over rising costs and supply chain complexity for businesses on both sides.