China Slaps 100% Tariff on Canadian Canola in Retaliation: Trudeau’s EV Tariff Backfires Spectacularly

Image Credit, Jim Black

In a predictable and entirely avoidable act of economic retaliation, China has imposed a 100% tariff on Canadian canola exports—directly responding to the Trudeau government’s decision to slap the same rate on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs). It’s a trade war Canada can’t afford, and it was triggered by one of the most ill-advised political moves in recent memory.

Let’s be clear: Chinese EVs make up less than 1% of the Canadian market. Imposing a 100% tariff is like trying to starve a dragon by burning your own crops. It makes no economic sense. But Trudeau did it anyway, following the Biden administration’s lead, despite the fact that the United States has Tesla—a domestic EV giant—to protect. Canada does not.

Tesla, despite its global brand, is being outclassed by Chinese competitors like BYD in affordability, performance, and innovation. BYD’s EVs come loaded with better range, faster charging, and lower price tags. But instead of encouraging healthy competition and better options for Canadian consumers, the Trudeau government caved to protectionist pressures and joined a senseless tariff war.

Now, China is hitting back where it hurts: agriculture. Canola is one of Canada’s top exports to China, and this tariff is going to wreck an already fragile supply chain. Farmers in the Prairies are the first casualties of this political vanity project. Billions of dollars are on the line, and for what? A gesture?

This move reeks of performative politics. It’s Trudeau pretending to be tough on China without any real leverage, while Canadian producers get crushed in the crossfire. And let’s not overlook the timing: with inflation still biting, Canada just made electric vehicles more expensive and food production more uncertain in one fell swoop.

Enough is enough. Canada needs leaders who understand that trade is not a toy. These tariff tantrums are not acts of strength—they’re economic vandalism, and it’s Canadians who pay the price.