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International Trade Commission reviews tomato tariffs as large growers challenge decision

A group of fresh tomato growers says market fundamentals since 2019 have changed, and the need for tariffs on Mexican imports is no longer relevant.

Controlled Environment Agriculture Alliance Executive Director Tom Stenzel says greenhouse-grown tomatoes should not be in the same category as field-grown.

“The market impact on field-grown tomatoes that I have seen, I call the greenhouse revolution, not imports of competitive field-grown product,” he says. “Today, greenhouse-grown tomatoes dominate U.S. retail sales, whether grown in Canada, Mexico, or the U.S. Field-grown tomatoes have become mostly a food service product.”

Stenzel estimates U.S. greenhouse-grown tomatoes now make up more than half of fresh market domestic production, and says his members have invested more than $450 million in new facilities across North America since 2019.

The International Trade Commission is reconsidering its decision to impose a 17 percent antidumping duty on Mexican tomatoes, as opponents claim circumstances are not the same since the Commission last examined the industry in 2019.

During Tuesday’s hearing, fourth-generation Michigan tomato grower Fred Leitz said the current order finally protects American farmers from unfair trade.

“While it has been a struggle, we have thus far been able to stay in business,” he shares. “However, if Mexicans are allowed to enter tomatoes in the United States without restriction, I truly fear, I truly fear that my generation may be the fourth and final to grow tomatoes on our farm.”

Commissioner Jason Kerns says U.S. producers moving operations to Mexico is a sign of domestic market injury.

“Those U.S. producers of greenhouse tomatoes are more concerned about preserving their Mexican operations than their U.S. operations, and they want to be able to import without paying duties from Mexico, and that’s not in the interest of the U.S. industry from my perspective,” he says.

Supporters of the tariffs say the largest change since the last review has been the cost of production, which has increased 65 percent, while fresh tomato prices have only increased 11 percent.

Arizona State University ag economist Timothy Richards says his research has found no statistical evidence that Mexican imports drive down U.S. prices.

“I find in general, through several different analyses, that the products are not of like kind and quality, that the products that are predominantly grown in Mexico are not the same thing as those grown generally in the U.S., and they don’t belong in the same market,” he says.

USDA data from 2024 finds domestic greenhouse tomato production accounts for 12 percent of the available U.S. supply.

The agency says as of 2023, domestic field-grown fresh market tomato production has declined 49 percent from 2010 and 63 percent since 2000.

The U.S. fresh tomato industry has continuously requested relief from Mexican imports since 1996 through suspension agreements to eliminate unfair trade.

The commission is accepting comments on the investigation until June 25, 2026.