Global business markets were shaken on April 2 when President Trump announced a 10% Global Tariff, with higher levels Reciprocal Tariffs imposed on dozens of specific countries. One week later, on April 9th, the U.S. Government announced it was pausing the reciprocal tariffs for 90 days (the global tariffs will stay in place).
However, China was excluded from the pause, with the Trump Administration increasing tariffs even further to bring the total U.S. tariff on Chinese goods to 125%.
The dietary supplements industry is heavily reliant on China for many of its ingredients. A number of ingredients, from vitamins and minerals to amino acids and Coenzyme Q10, were included on an exempted list,
“The exemptions have saved the industry millions, if not tens [of millions], if not hundreds of millions, and so it’s really important that that you know that cost saving,” Dr. Fabricant told NutraIngredients.
He shared a list from one of the association’s member companies that showed 110 of its ingredients were exempted.
“That’s significant,” he said. “I’ve heard other people say, well, it’s only like 20 things. No, it’s going to be in the hundreds, maybe close to one thousand.”
“And if there are things off the list […], come to DC,” he said (NPA’s Fly-In Day is slated for May 8). “Having your member of Congress be able to go, ‘Hey, we can’t get this anywhere else. We need a discussion on this’ and being able to have them contact the White House, or we’ve been over at the White House making those contacts directly, not guaranteeing outcomes.”
China
Dr. Fabricant said he expected that China was always going to be very different from everything else, but noted that many of the ingredients on the exemption list also apply to China.
“It’s critical that we’re accurate on these issues,” he said. “We [NPA] understand what’s on the list and what’s not. We still think China is going to be a longer-term discussion than any of the other tariff implementation as it pertains to our industry.”
He added that the industry, if it has not already, does need to start looking for other suppliers in other nations, particularly for some botanicals which could perhaps be sourced from other parts of Southeast Asia.
“I really think people need to make sure they’re checking their work and doing their homework before they start going, ‘Oh my God, you know, it’s Godzilla,‘” he added. “This isn’t a science fiction movie. This is a real issue, and it’s one that can be addressed. It’s one that can be handled.”
Dr. Fabricant also discussed the potential for onshoring capabilities and the investing in the domestic supply chain
