Trump Drops 50% Tariffs on 22 Canadian Product Categories—Then Adds 100 More to the List

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President Donald Trump has reshuffled one of the most aggressive pieces of his trade policy toward Canada, removing 22 Canadian tariff lines from an additional 50% U.S. duty while simultaneously placing 100 others under that same levy. The changes, signed October 23, take effect October 30.

The move is less a retreat than a recalibration. Canadian plywood, packaging materials, refrigeration equipment and agricultural machinery are among the products gaining relief. Meanwhile, sweetened cocoa powder, shampoo, flooring, carpets, air conditioners, valves and dozens of other goods are being added. The lists are highly technical—multiple tariff codes can describe variations of essentially the same product—but the consequences are tangible for manufacturers, farmers and distributors on both sides of the border. The 50% Section 338 duty also applies even when covered goods qualify under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Seaweed and Edible Algae Get a Tariff Reprieve

Canadian seaweed and other algae intended for human consumption are among the products coming off the 50% tariff list. The exemption covers products that are fresh, chilled, frozen or dried, whether they are ground or left intact. That distinction may sound unusually specific, but customs duties are assessed through equally specific tariff classifications, making the precise wording important to importers.

The change attracted particular attention in Maine, where Republican Senator Susan Collins said she had pressed the administration for relief affecting agricultural industries, including seaweed producers. For a processor buying Canadian edible seaweed, eliminating an additional duty equal to half the customs value can materially change sourcing costs. Yet the broader trade dispute is far from ending. The same new tariff package adds Canadian products such as cocoa preparations, carpets and canoes to the 50% list, illustrating how targeted relief for one supply chain can arrive alongside new costs for another.

Polypropylene Film and Sheets Move Off the 50% List

One of the less visible exemptions involves nonadhesive polypropylene plates, sheets, film, foil and strip. The tariff line applies to noncellular polypropylene material that has not been reinforced or combined with other materials. These products rarely attract political attention, but plastic films and sheets are common inputs in packaging, manufacturing and other industrial applications.

For businesses that use Canadian polypropylene as an intermediate material rather than as a finished consumer product, the change could provide relief well before anything reaches a retail shelf. An extra 50% tariff can be particularly disruptive for inexpensive inputs purchased in large volumes because the added cost accumulates across thousands of units. The October 23 reshuffle demonstrates how granular the tariff battle has become: polypropylene film receives relief, while other plastic and polymer products remain exposed or are being added elsewhere. Polyethylene terephthalate with a specified viscosity and elastomeric polyurethane, for example, appear among the newly covered tariff lines.

Plastic Shipping Boxes, Cases and Crates Are Exempted

Canadian plastic boxes, cases, crates and similar articles used to transport or pack goods will no longer face the additional Section 338 duty under the October changes. Packaging can represent a relatively small share of the price of a finished product, yet it touches enormous portions of the economy because virtually every agricultural, industrial and retail supply chain needs containers somewhere along the way.

That helps explain why packaging relief was emphasized by Senator Collins, who linked the exemptions to agricultural producers in Maine. A blueberry grower or food processor may not manufacture plastic crates, but a 50% tariff on Canadian containers can still increase the cost of getting harvested products cleaned, packed and moved to customers. The administration is therefore easing pressure on some cross-border packaging supplies even as it expands the tariff elsewhere. New additions include wooden packing boxes with solid sides, showing how one packaging classification can gain relief while another becomes subject to the levy.

Polyethylene Sacks and Bags Also Gain Relief

Sacks and bags made from polymers of ethylene are another Canadian packaging category being removed from the extra 50% duty. The official tariff language includes sacks, bags and cones used for transporting or packing merchandise. These are ordinary products, but their ubiquity makes them an important example of how trade policy can reach far beyond highly visible industries such as automobiles or steel.

For agricultural and food businesses, packaging costs can be particularly sensitive because margins may already depend on seasonal harvests, transportation expenses and commodity prices. Removing a 50% tariff from qualifying Canadian bags does not guarantee that every customer will see an immediate price decrease, but it eliminates a substantial border charge that importers would otherwise have to absorb or pass along. At the same time, the new tariff list includes other consumer and industrial products, ranging from shampoo and soap to lubricants and prepared waxes, underscoring that Washington is shifting the burden rather than broadly dismantling it.

Birch-Faced Plywood Is Removed From the Tariff List

Thin plywood with a birch face ply is included among the Canadian products receiving tariff relief. The relevant classification covers sheets no more than 6 millimetres thick that have not been surface-covered beyond a clear or transparent coating. That level of detail matters because a slightly different plywood construction or finish can fall under another customs code and receive different treatment.

Plywood is used in cabinetry, furniture, interiors, construction and specialty manufacturing, so a 50% surcharge can quickly affect downstream costs. The October proclamation removes several plywood classifications at once, making wood products one of the more noticeable beneficiaries of the revision. The relief is not universal, however. Other Canadian wood products are being placed on the tariff list, including certain fibreboard, shaped coniferous wood, multilayer flooring panels, bamboo joinery, wooden coffins and small wooden articles. The result is a more selective tariff structure rather than a general exemption for Canadian wood.

Walnut-Faced Plywood Gets the Same Treatment

Plywood no more than 6 millimetres thick with a walnut face ply is also leaving the Section 338 tariff list, provided it meets the specific customs description. Like the birch classification, the product cannot be covered beyond a clear or transparent surface treatment if it is to fall within the tariff line being removed.

For furniture makers, cabinet shops and specialty manufacturers, walnut-faced panels can be valued for appearance rather than simply structural performance. A tariff equal to 50% of the customs value can therefore be significant when applied to decorative material that already commands a premium. The exemption illustrates why tariff announcements need to be read beyond broad labels such as “wood” or “plywood.” Washington is making changes at the eight-digit HTSUS level, where different woods, thicknesses and treatments receive separate classifications. Some Canadian panels will become cheaper to import after October 30, while other wood-based goods newly listed in the same proclamation will move in the opposite direction.

Other Thin Nonconiferous Plywood Wins Relief

Another exemption covers thin plywood with an outer ply made from specified nonconiferous woods other than walnut and birch. The qualifying sheets are no more than 6 millimetres thick and cannot be covered beyond a clear or transparent finish. It is one of several closely related plywood tariff lines removed simultaneously, which is why describing the changes as 22 completely separate industries would be misleading.

For importers, however, each line has real significance. Customs classifications determine whether an arriving shipment faces the additional 50% charge, so two seemingly similar panels can receive very different treatment depending on wood species and surface finishing. That complexity is increasingly characteristic of the Canada-U.S. trade fight. The new October annex adds 100 separate HTSUS lines, but many of those additions are variations of the same broader product. Carpeting is the clearest example: dozens of new classifications distinguish materials, construction methods and whether a floor covering is tufted, woven, felted or made up.

Surface-Covered Birch and Walnut Plywood Is Also Exempted

The administration is separately removing the 50% duty from certain thin plywood whose outer ply consists of specified nonconiferous wood, including birch and walnut, when the material has been surface-covered beyond a clear or transparent finish. That differentiates it from other plywood exemptions in the same package, which specifically apply to panels without heavier surface treatment.

The distinction demonstrates the sometimes bewildering mechanics behind headline tariff numbers. One company may import unfinished decorative plywood while another buys coated panels, and their shipments can appear under different tariff lines even when both businesses casually describe the product as plywood. Beginning October 30, this particular classification will no longer carry the additional Section 338 duty. Yet the overall U.S. tariff policy toward Canada remains restrictive. The White House explicitly says covered Section 338 goods do not gain an exemption simply by meeting USMCA origin rules, and some affected products can face Section 338 duties alongside separate Section 232 tariffs.

Spanish-Cedar-Faced Plywood Leaves the List

Certain thin plywood with a Spanish cedar face ply is another beneficiary of the October 23 decision. The tariff classification covers panels no more than 6 millimetres thick whose outer ply is nonconiferous wood not covered by another specified subheading and that have not received surface treatment beyond a clear or transparent coating.

For businesses using specialized wood panels, such narrow classifications can determine whether a shipment suddenly costs thousands of dollars more at the border. A US$100,000 qualifying shipment facing an additional 50% duty would generate US$50,000 in extra tariff expense before considering other applicable charges. Removing the Section 338 levy eliminates that specific additional cost for the newly exempt classification. It does not mean Canadian wood has escaped the trade confrontation altogether. The new tariff additions include certain medium-density fibreboard, other fibreboard, wood flooring, wooden packaging and finished wooden goods, creating clear winners and losers within the same broad Canadian forestry supply chain.

More Nonconiferous Plywood Categories Gain Protection

The relief extends to another classification of thin plywood with a nonconiferous outer ply that is not specifically covered by the preceding tariff categories. These panels must also be no more than 6 millimetres thick and, under this particular code, cannot have surface covering beyond a clear or transparent treatment.

Taken together, the plywood exemptions demonstrate why the headline number of 22 removed tariff lines should not be interpreted as 22 unrelated sectors. Seven of the removed classifications concern varieties of plywood. The administration is effectively fine-tuning which products bear the 50% charge rather than carving entire industries out of the trade war. That matters to Canadian exporters attempting to determine whether the October 30 revision helps them. A producer cannot rely simply on the word “plywood”; it needs the precise HTSUS classification used when the merchandise enters the United States. Meanwhile, other wood classifications appear among the 100 newly tariffed lines.

Surface-Treated Nonconiferous Plywood Gets Relief Too

A seventh plywood classification is also being removed, covering certain sheets no more than 6 millimetres thick with an outer ply of specified nonconiferous wood and a surface treatment extending beyond a clear or transparent finish. The exemption completes a cluster of closely related plywood changes that accounts for nearly one-third of the 22 tariff lines being dropped.

For Canadian panel manufacturers and their American customers, that concentration can be more important than the headline number itself. A tariff revision focused on multiple codes within one product family can offer substantial relief to businesses specializing in that family even if the overall trade relationship remains tense. At the same time, the October proclamation creates new exposure for other building and interior products. Vinyl flooring and a large range of carpets and textile floor coverings are among the 100 lines that will begin facing the additional 50% duty. Home-improvement supply chains therefore receive both tariff reductions and new tariff increases in the same action.

Thick Plastic-Coated Paper and Paperboard Come Off the List

The new exemptions also reach certain bleached paper and paperboard coated, impregnated or covered with plastic. One removed classification applies to material weighing more than 150 grams per square metre and measuring at least 0.3 millimetres thick, when supplied in specified rolls, strips or sheets.

Those measurements illustrate just how specific tariff treatment can become. Importers dealing in coated packaging material may need to know not only what the product is made from but also its weight, thickness and dimensions before determining whether it qualifies for relief. For companies supplying packaging to agriculture or food processors, removing the 50% duty can lower an unusually large border cost on what is fundamentally a business input. Paper products nevertheless remain a battleground. The administration is adding other writing paper, kraft paper, composite paper, self-adhesive paper and plastic-coated paper classifications to the new 50% list, producing a patchwork of exemptions and newly imposed charges.

Thinner Plastic-Coated Paperboard Gets Relief

A closely related paper classification also loses the Section 338 duty. It covers certain bleached paper and paperboard weighing more than 150 grams per square metre but measuring less than 0.3 millimetres thick, again within specified roll, strip and sheet dimensions. The difference from the preceding exemption can therefore come down to whether the material crosses a 0.3-millimetre threshold.

For customs brokers and import managers, those fine distinctions are not academic. They determine whether the United States collects an additional tariff equal to half the declared customs value. The exemption could consequently matter for packaging manufacturers, printers and industrial users buying Canadian coated paper stock. Yet paper remains heavily represented on both sides of the new tariff equation. While these two coated-paper classifications receive relief, the 100 newly covered lines include other paper, paperboard, bags and labels. The October decision is better understood as a reallocation of tariff pressure than as a broad normalization of Canada-U.S. trade.

Corrugated Cartons and Boxes Escape the 50% Duty

Corrugated paper and paperboard cartons, boxes and cases are among the most recognizable products removed from the tariff list. These containers are used throughout agriculture, food processing, manufacturing, e-commerce and retail. Their inclusion in the original tariffs meant that an ordinary shipping box imported from Canada could carry an extraordinary additional duty.

The exemption is particularly relevant to the political story surrounding the October revision. Senator Collins identified corrugated packaging among the products important to Maine farmers and said she had repeatedly sought tariff relief from senior administration officials. For a grower shipping potatoes, apples or blueberries, a box is not optional decoration—it is part of getting a perishable product safely to market. Removing the 50% charge therefore targets an input that can ripple through numerous businesses. Still, other packaging products are moving onto the tariff list, including certain large paper sacks and wooden packing cases, reinforcing the highly selective nature of the change.

Paper Sacks and Bags Are Taken Off the Tariff List

Certain Canadian sacks and bags made from paper, paperboard, cellulose wadding or webs of cellulose fibres will no longer face the additional 50% tariff. The exemption includes qualifying products classified as miscellaneous sacks and bags, including cones, under the specific HTSUS line identified in the White House annex.

This is another example of relatively mundane packaging becoming part of a high-stakes international trade confrontation. A farm or processor may focus primarily on crop yields, labour and transportation, yet packaging is one of the recurring expenses required to move products from the production floor to customers. A 50% tariff on imported packaging can turn that routine input into a meaningful cost concern. The October changes reduce that burden for this particular classification. They do not remove all paper bags from the dispute: another code covering paper sacks and bags with a base width of at least 40 centimetres appears among the 100 newly tariffed products beginning October 30.

Molded and Pressed Paper Pulp Products Get Relief

Molded or pressed articles made from paper pulp are also being removed from the 50% Section 338 tariff. Such products can include various forms of protective or formed packaging, making the exemption relevant to businesses that rely on fibre-based materials to cushion, separate or contain merchandise during transportation.

The category illustrates how the tariff conflict can influence decisions that appear far removed from international politics. A manufacturer deciding between fibre packaging, plastic packaging or another material must consider not only performance and price but increasingly the tariff classification of imported inputs. The Trump administration’s latest revision relieves several packaging codes at once, including plastic crates, polyethylene sacks, corrugated cartons and molded paper pulp. At the same time, other packaging-related lines are being added. This continual movement makes supply-chain planning more complicated: a material that carries a major tariff one month can receive an exemption later, while a substitute product can suddenly become subject to the same 50% levy.

Other Paper-Pulp Articles Receive an Exemption

The White House is also removing a second paper-pulp classification covering articles not specifically identified elsewhere in the tariff schedule. The designation “nesoi,” frequently used in the annex, means “not elsewhere specified or included.” It functions as a catch-all classification for qualifying products that do not fit a more precise tariff description.

That technical language matters because trade measures are administered through product codes rather than ordinary commercial descriptions. An importer cannot assume that every pulp-based item gains relief simply because one tariff line does. The specific code used for the shipment controls whether the additional Section 338 tariff applies. This exemption nonetheless strengthens a broader pattern in the October 23 decision: several packaging and material-handling inputs are being removed from the 50% list. The administration appears to be easing costs on some goods used by U.S. farms and processors while shifting tariff pressure elsewhere, including onto carpets, household cooling equipment, power tools, valves and selected laboratory products.

Certain Refrigeration and Freezing Equipment Gets Relief

Canadian refrigerating or freezing equipment classified under the specified miscellaneous tariff line will no longer be subject to the additional 50% duty. Refrigeration is especially important in agriculture and food supply chains, where maintaining temperature can determine whether a product reaches customers in saleable condition or becomes waste.

The exemption does not cover every refrigerator or freezer entering from Canada. It applies to the particular HTSUS classification named in the annex, which is why businesses still need to verify individual customs codes. The contrast with the new tariff additions is striking: chest-type freezers with capacity not exceeding 800 litres are among the products being newly placed under the 50% tariff. In other words, Washington is removing one refrigeration classification while imposing the charge on another. For distributors, farms and food processors, that creates a product-by-product calculation rather than a simple rule that Canadian refrigeration equipment is either tariffed or exempt.

Industrial Temperature-Treatment Machinery Is Removed

Industrial machinery, plant and equipment used to treat materials through processes involving changes in temperature also receive an exemption under a specific miscellaneous classification. Equipment of this kind can be used across processing and manufacturing environments where heating, cooling or another controlled temperature change is part of production.

Removing a 50% duty on capital equipment can matter differently than removing the same tariff from disposable packaging. Machinery is purchased less frequently, but individual units can carry much higher prices, so a tariff applied to the customs value can become a substantial upfront investment cost. The relief may therefore affect decisions about replacing or upgrading Canadian equipment. Yet machinery remains part of the broader tariff expansion as well. Window or wall air conditioners, chest freezers, certain electric hand tools, valves and specialized instruments are among the 100 newly covered codes. The administration has not abandoned machinery tariffs; it has redrawn which particular machines face them.

Filling, Sealing and Labeling Machinery Wins an Exemption

Machinery used for filling, closing, sealing, capsuling or labeling bottles, cans, boxes and other containers is another Canadian product line leaving the 50% tariff regime. The classification also encompasses qualifying machinery used to aerate beverages. For food manufacturers, beverage processors and other packaged-goods businesses, this equipment can sit directly on the production line.

Capital machinery differs from a consumer import because the tariff can affect a company’s ability to expand capacity or automate operations. If a qualifying Canadian machine were valued at US$200,000, an additional 50% tariff would represent US$100,000 before other applicable duties and expenses. Eliminating that particular Section 338 charge can therefore alter an investment calculation significantly. The relief arrives amid an otherwise aggressive trade environment: the proclamation states that newly covered Section 338 products remain subject to the additional 50% duty regardless of USMCA status, and the new tariff additions span consumer products, building materials, industrial equipment and specialized medical or scientific devices.

Packing and Wrapping Machinery Comes Off the List

Certain packing or wrapping machinery will also lose the additional tariff on October 30. The exemption targets equipment not otherwise specified under its particular customs heading, adding another piece of production-line machinery to the group receiving relief.

For farms, processors and manufacturers that need to move products quickly from production into packaging, the combination of exemptions can be meaningful. The administration is removing tariffs not only from qualifying wrapping machinery but also from filling and sealing equipment, several packaging materials and certain refrigeration machinery. That mix aligns closely with the types of inputs agricultural businesses may use to prepare goods for market. It also helps explain why the changes have attracted attention in Maine, where Senator Collins emphasized the impact of tariffs on farmers and growers. Still, the White House did not reduce the basic Section 338 rate. It remains 50% on covered Canadian goods, and 100 new tariff lines are being inserted into the schedule at the same time.

Agricultural Cleaning and Sorting Machines Gain Relief

The final tariff line being removed covers machines used for cleaning, sorting or grading eggs, fruit or other agricultural produce. It is one of the clearest examples of the administration targeting relief toward equipment used directly by farmers and food-handling businesses.

Consider an apple operation that needs machinery to separate produce by size or quality before packing. A 50% additional tariff on Canadian equipment can dramatically increase the cost of replacing a machine, particularly when a suitable domestic substitute is unavailable or significantly more expensive. Senator Collins specifically connected the tariff relief to Maine industries including blueberry, potato and apple producers. Yet this concession should not be mistaken for a broad de-escalation. The October 23 annex removes 22 tariff lines but adds 100 others, including cocoa preparations, shampoo, soaps, flooring, extensive carpet classifications, air conditioners, freezers, electric tools, valves, canoes, surgical equipment, scientific instruments and archery gear. The tariff battle is changing shape, not disappearing.

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