Melquiades Flores, a 58-year-old business man is the owner of M&M Tomatoes and Chile Company, has expressed dismay over U.S. President-elect, Donald Trump’s pledge to impose a 25% tariff on all imports from Mexico and Canada when he assumes office on January 20, plus an extra 10% tariff on Chinese goods.
“Produce of Mexico” is imprinted on almost all the boxes of tomatoes and chilies that arrive at Flores’ downtown warehouse, destined for homes, hotels and restaurant kitchens across the city.” Flores had said.
“People will have to pay a higher price. Whatever they charge us, we will pass on to the consumer,” the business owner added from his section of the larger complex, the Los Angeles Wholesale Produce Market.
Regardless of what happens in January, Flores says he has no option but to keep importing produce from Mexico, especially in the winter. The chili-growing season in California usually lasts four months; from August to November, and for the rest of the year, he gets the produce from the Mexican states of Sinaloa, Baja California and Sonora.
Owing to this, Flores said;
“Any tariff is an added tax that impacts all of us, including those who buy a pound, two pounds, or a thousand or 10,000 pounds.”
The businessman has lived in Los Angeles for 40 years and is originally from the Mexican state of Morelos.
Trump has proclaimed his love of tariffs, supposedly for raising revenue and protecting U.S. industries against imports, but he avoids mentioning the inflationary effect or the impact of potential retaliation from the United States’ top three trading partners.
Flores is not alone with his worry, several other business people as well as officials from Mexico, Canada and China and major industry groups have warned that the tariffs Trump proposed would harm the economies of all involved and cause inflation to spike and damage job markets.
“The president should have first seen how much this will impact everyone before speaking,” Flores concluded his grave perception.
