CLEVELAND — As new tariffs against specific countries go into effect, shoppers may soon feel the impact at the grocery store.
While many consumers can put off buying a new car or the latest iPhone, grocery trips are harder to skip — and now, they may come with a higher price tag.
The United States has officially implemented increased tariffs, including on imported seafood, which makes up roughly 85% of the nation’s fish supply.
At Cantanese Classic Seafood, buyer Drew Breese said the cost of fish has been fluctuating daily.
“Every morning I walk in, I don’t know if the tariff on Japan is 24% or if it’s going to be 10,” Breese said. “Now I have a list seven pages long on my desk… anywhere from Sri Lanka to Iceland to New Zealand that have different levels of tariffs."
Breese said that importing fish is a necessity and the United States can't sustainably catch what it needs.
Those changes are already being felt by consumers.
“My bill was a little bit higher for the same things that I normally buy,” Dave Tarbert, who was grocery shopping Wednesday, said.
Another noted they paid $90 for just 10 or 11 items.
To stretch their dollars, it's best that shoppers plan ahead and be willing to visit multiple stores in search of the best deals.
When it comes to seafood, buying frozen over fresh may offer some savings — as well as looking for specific labeling.
“Product of USA is your best bet. Once-frozen product is your second-best bet,” Breese said. “Third… just lean on your trusted supplier.”
How long the higher prices stick around depends on the reason behind the tariffs.
If they’re being used as a bargaining tool, they could ease relatively quickly. But if they’re part of a larger plan to bring more industry back to the U.S., the increases could last for years.
“The tariffs would need to stay in place for years, if not decades,” Jonathan Earnest, assistant professor of economics at Case Western University, said.
Breese said that even fishermen are weighing whether it’s worth going out.
“This week the fishermen decided with these tariffs, we don’t even know if it’s worth it to go out,” he said. “To spend the money on gas to bring the tuna back — if it’s not going to sell and it’s just going to sit.”
He says you'll notice a higher price tag at restaurants, too, or a cut to your usual portions.
“They’re just trying to keep their doors open," Breese said. "If that means that they’re putting one less shrimp on the plate this week or whatever it has to be or one less ounce of grouper… well then so be it.”
