Recovered material imports, like the 1 million tons of recovered fiber the U.S. brought in from Canada last year, appear to be tariff-exempt under a new executive order. | Pjhpix/Shutterstock
The U.S. tariff whirlwind continues this month: Many imports from Canada and Mexico, including those of recycled materials, had their tariffs suspended two days after they took effect last week, while previously announced tariffs on aluminum and steel from all countries are set to take effect Wednesday.
President Donald Trump enacted the blanket tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports into the U.S. on March 4, spurring immediate retaliatory tariffs by Canada and talks of retaliation by Mexico. Two days later, the U.S. changed plans, announcing via executive order that products that are covered by the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement – a free trade agreement Trump negotiated in 2020 – would largely be exempt from the tariffs. That suspension appears to be indefinite.
Both post-consumer and post-industrial recycled material imports into the U.S. from either country qualify for the USMCA tariff exemption, provided they were collected in North America, according to the Recycled Materials Association.
The association noted there are additional paperwork requirements in order to claim what’s called USMCA “preference,” which will now be required to ship goods tariff-free. The association advised recycling companies to review the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol guide to USMCA compliance.
Last year, the U.S. brought in 112,000 short tons of used beverage cans, 1 million short tons of recovered fiber, 393 million pounds of scrap plastic and 6 million pounds of e-scrap from Canada, along with 158 million pounds of scrap plastic, 66,000 short tons of used beverage cans and 14 million pounds of e-scrap from Mexico. For the time being, it appears those imports will be allowed to continue tariff-free with extra paperwork.
Still, starting Wednesday, imports of primary aluminum and steel – but not recycled forms of either commodity – will be subject to 25% tariffs. That applies to imports from all countries, an effort by the Trump administration to end exemptions and loopholes to the president’s original 2018 steel and aluminum tariffs, which had created a patchwork of tariff rates.
Trump on Tuesday announced the tariff on Canadian aluminum and steel specifically would be twice as high, 50%, in response to Canada’s retaliation to his earlier measures. Later that same day, senior members of the administration rolled back that move, leaving the original 25% tariff in place.
MRF operator Eureka Recycling previously told Resource Recycling the long-term effects of tariffs are concerning for the recycling sector, because of the potential for a recession. During economic downturns, less consumer spending typically translates to less manufacturing, and therefore less demand for recycled materials. That can trigger a drop in commodity prices, and to the bottom-line for MRFs.
The Alliance for Mission-Based Recycling elaborated on the recession impact on recycling last week.
“Most recycling facilities use the value of commodities to offset the price of processing (sorting and baling) mixed recyclables,” the organization wrote. “Additionally, some facilities have contracts with local municipalities to share revenue from the sale of commodities since the material comes from the community, so the community shares in its value. When the value of commodities goes down, recyclers need to charge greater processing fees to continue running an economically viable business.”
Economic fears continued to build this week. During an interview on Sunday, Trump declined to predict whether there would be a recession this year but acknowledged there “is a period of transition.” U.S. stock markets tumbled the following day, with the S&P 500 falling to its lowest point so far in 2025.
Trump is also continuing to discuss additional new tariffs. During a speech before Congress last week, Trump said that effective April 2, he will enact “reciprocal tariffs” on any country that has its own tariffs on U.S. imports.
“Whatever they tariff us, other countries, we will tariff them,” he said, adding that he would also consider non-monetary barriers to countries that have measures that hamper U.S. imports.
Additionally, asked during the Sunday interview whether those reciprocal tariffs represent the last prong of his tariff strategy, Trump said “we may go up with some tariffs, it depends.”