A new round of U.S. tariffs could widen trade barriers for Canada's forest sector, with dozens of wood, pulp, paper and packaging products potentially facing a 50% duty if the measures take effect next month.
Industry organizations say the proposal could create additional uncertainty across integrated North American supply chains while increasing costs throughout the forest products value chain.
U.S. President Donald Trump announced the measures through three executive orders, citing Canada's retaliatory trade actions, provincial restrictions on U.S. alcoholic beverages and the country's dairy import regime. Unlike previous tariff actions, the new measures would apply to a broad range of Canadian goods, including products that currently qualify for preferential treatment under the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA), broadening the scope of the proposed measures.
Broad product coverage
The proposed tariff list spans much of Canada's forest products value chain, covering both primary materials and value-added manufactured products. Among the affected items are chemical wood pulp, printing and writing papers, tissue stock, coated graphic papers, paperboard grades, corrugated boxes, paper sacks, packaging containers, molded pulp products, paper labels and numerous other converted paper products. A wide variety of lumber, plywood, fibreboard, mouldings and engineered wood products also appear on the list.
If implemented, the measures would extend well beyond the long-running softwood lumber dispute that has shaped Canada-U.S. forest trade. They would reach both raw materials and higher-value manufactured products exported to the U.S. market.
Industry reaction
The Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) said the proposed expansion would add pressure to an already difficult trade environment for Canadian producers, which continue to face existing duties on softwood lumber and other trade restrictions. FPAC noted that Canada's forest products sector directly employs nearly 200,000 people and supports another 200,000 jobs across transportation, manufacturing and related industries.
According to FPAC, broader tariffs on forest products would increase costs for American homebuilders, manufacturers and consumers by making essential building materials more expensive. FPAC President and Chief Executive Officer Derek Nighbor said the proposal runs counter to recent U.S. efforts aimed at improving housing affordability by encouraging new residential construction.
Canada's response
The new tariffs are scheduled to take effect in 29 days. Prime Minister Mark Carney has said Canada is assessing its options should the measures move forward.
For the pulp, paper and forest products industry, the proposal marks another escalation in an already volatile Canada-U.S. trade dispute. Companies on both sides of the border are now assessing the potential impact on supply chains that have been deeply integrated for decades.
