Guest: Erin Mittlestaedt, CEO of the FruitGuys, discusses the impact of tariffs on America's farmers; Global trade growth expected to slow; Chief supply chain officers are not prepared for tariff impacts

Mar 14, 2025

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Our guest on this week's episode is Erin Mittlestaedt, the CEO of the FruitGuys. The world continues to react to the trade disruptions caused by the Trump administration’s new tariffs. Of course, tariffs don’t only mean that we pay more for imports, it also affects exports because of the retaliatory tariffs imposed by other countries that we trade with. Farmers will be among those hit the hardest by retaliatory tariffs. They may limit export markets and if other farmers are not exporting as much also that means the market will flood with more domestic products, reducing the income. Our guest shares what the new trade policies will mean for these farmers.

Despite anticipating geopolitical shifts, Chief Supply Chain Officers (CSCOs) remain largely unprepared for their impact. That’s according to a recent report from British management consulting firm Egon Zehnder. The company’s latest CSCO report surveying supply chain business leaders found that their jobs have many competing priorities demanding their attention. As a result, just 15% of CSCOs surveyed reported feeling prepared for the impact of trade policy changes such as tariffs.

Increasing tariffs essentially means adding a tax on U.S. companies that import goods. As a result, these companies either source less of their products internationally or consumers will buy less of them because of higher prices on the shelves. Either way, freight carriers won’t be happy because they’ll be hauling less cargo. A new report shows the possible impacts of the tariff war on the carrier community and it also speaks of the probability that growth in international trade will slow this year.

Supply Chain Xchange also offers a podcast series called Supply Chain in the Fast Lane. It is co-produced with the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals. All episodes are available to stream now. Go to your favorite podcast platform to subscribe and to listen to past and future episodes. The podcast is also available at www.thescxchange.com.

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Podcast is sponsored by: Zebra Robotics Automation

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