The Morning Harvest: Farm and Food News, No. 019, Tuesday, October 27, 2026
Today in 30 seconds
Top story: the Canada tariff is still 50 percent, but on October 30, 22 lines, including packing, sorting and refrigeration gear, come off and about 100 lines go on.
Recall: Natural Grocers Brand Organic 2 lb Mung Beans are recalled in 22 states for possible glass.
Why it costs: a pumpkin is $5.54 per pumpkin in USDA ads, while wholesale bins work out to roughly $3.00 to $4.50 per large pumpkin by our arithmetic.
In season: kabocha squash, celery and lemons all showed up in more ads this week.
Could you grow this: kiwi vines take three or more years to a commercial crop, so this month is for planning.
Garden State minute: USDA FSA paid about $6.28 million to New Jersey farmers, and two enrollment dates are coming.
Buy local: pasture-raised beef and eggs, pastured chicken, and our own blackberries at our farm stand in Hammonton, NJ. Free pickup by appointment, open to the public Saturdays 9 to 3. See the price list: https://www.curatednature.co/farm-stand
What do the October 30 Canada tariff exemptions mean for food and farms?
What happened. President Trump signed a proclamation on Friday, October 23, 2026 under Section 338 of the Tariff Act of 1930 that changes which Canadian goods carry the 50 percent additional tariff. It amends Proclamation 11048. From 12:01 a.m. Eastern on Thursday, October 30, goods entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption face a new list (White House fact sheet, Oct 23). Part A removes 22 tariff lines. The ag-relevant ones are edible seaweed (1212.21.00), polypropylene film (3920.20.00), plastic boxes and crates (3923.10.90), polyethylene sacks and bags (3923.21.00), plastic-coated paperboard (4811.51.20 and 4811.51.40), corrugated cartons (4819.10.00), paper sacks and bags (4819.40.00), molded pulp egg and fruit trays (4823.70.00 and 4823.90.10), refrigerating and freezing equipment (8418.69.01), industrial heat-treatment machinery (8419.89.95), filling, closing, sealing and labeling machinery (8422.30.91), other packing machinery (8422.40.91), and machines that clean, sort or grade eggs, fruit and produce (8433.60.00). Seven plywood lines also come off. Part B adds about 100 lines, per trade press: 13 sweetened cocoa powder lines, carpets, archery gear, shampoo, paints, vinyl flooring, kraft paper, window air conditioners, valves, hand tools and canoes. The annex text we opened shows about 150 entries because cocoa and carpet lines are split finely, so counts differ. The rate stays 50 percent. Global Trade Alert says it covers about $20.3 billion of 2025 imports on 659 lines, about 5 percent of the $383 billion the US bought from Canada. RBC Economics says more than 80 percent of Canadian exports stay duty free under USMCA. Global News reports $5.1 billion of 2025 trade comes off and $2.6 billion goes on. That is a single source, and we could not check it against Census data.
Why the tariff exists. The Section 338 trigger is alleged Canadian discrimination against US commerce in motor vehicles, alcohol and dairy: provincial bans on US liquor since March 2025, a 25 percent Canadian surtax on US vehicles, and dairy quota administration (Holland & Knight). The fact sheet says Canada walked away from a near-final trade deal and retaliated on about $20 billion of US exports. FoodNavigator reports Canada’s counter-tariffs cover $27.6 billion of US goods since Sept 8, including packaging and ag equipment. The original 50 percent has two dates: the proclamation is dated Aug 19 on paper, and collection began Aug 22, 2026. An earlier 35 percent IEEPA tariff was struck down by the Supreme Court on Feb 20, 2026. Politics sits alongside the trade case: the midterm election is Nov 3, and Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) is in a race polled 49 to 49 (Beacon/Shaw via Global News). The Wall Street Journal reported the exemptions were aimed at helping her (via Maine Public). An AP-NORC poll of Sept 24 to 28 found 65 percent blame the administration’s policies more than outside factors for high prices.
What packers actually pay, and what it costs one importer. We found no published per-carton, per-acre or per-farm cost. The duty is 50 percent of declared value and applies “even if some components are U.S.-made” (Troutman). That is the mechanism, and here is our arithmetic: a $10,000 order of Canadian cartons carried $5,000 of Section 338 duty before Oct 30 and carries none of it after. Collins’s office says Maine wild blueberry growers use specialized Canadian harvest boxes that fit their processing lines, and a US tote supplier stopped production, with no dollar figure given (Agri-Pulse; Bar Harbor Story). The IFPA’s Samantha Ayoub said tariff costs “can be difficult to absorb during harvest” (The Packer, Aug 25). At the shelf, USDA’s retail report of Oct 23 shows advertised prices of $5.69 per pint of blueberries (11 to 12 oz), $2.97 per 5 lb bag of russet potatoes and $1.14 per lb for Gala apples. Those are ad prices, not tariff effects. The one dollar example is Gellert Global Group, a New Jersey cheese importer. It paid over $520,000 in Section 338 duties between Sept 16 and Oct 11 and sued on Oct 20 in the Court of International Trade, seeking refunds with interest (Al Jazeera, Oct 20; FoodNavigator, Oct 26).
How Section 338 works. Section 338 (19 U.S.C. 1338) allows an additional duty of up to 50 percent. It was used for the first time this year and needs no prior agency investigation (Holland & Knight), and it lets the president suspend, revoke, supplement or amend (White House fact sheet). Customs and Border Protection applies it through HTSUS Chapter 99, subchapter III, U.S. Note 51. Duty follows the entry date: lines removed pay no Section 338 duty from 12:01 a.m. ET on Oct 30, and other duties continue. It is not retroactive, and no source describes a refund process for Section 338 duties. It stacks on normal duties and on Section 232. It has no expiry. Covered food is mostly dairy (about 52 lines), alcohol, cheese and fats and oils, plus the added cocoa powder; most fresh Canadian produce, grain and beef is not on the lists, though the exact ag basket is not fully verified.
What is not known and the precedent. Not published: how long the swap lasts, whether more exemptions come (Collins says she will seek more), CBP’s implementing guidance (pending as of the page we read), any official import-value table, and why cocoa, carpets and archery gear were chosen. There are two precedents. A Nov 14, 2025 order exempted coffee, tea, tropical fruit, cocoa, spices, bananas, oranges, tomatoes and beef from IEEPA reciprocal tariffs (Thompson Hine), a pure rollback rather than a swap. A Sept 15, 2026 change within this same action removed rock salt and cement and added ATVs and dairy. Reuters, via Global News on Oct 26, says Canada-US talks are moving quickly, but a deal before Nov 3 is doubted.
Reaction. Collins said she secured additional exemptions and will seek more. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) called it a “political stunt” (Agri-Pulse Daybreak, Oct 26). Rep. Richard Neal (D-Mass.) wants a permanent end, not reversible decisions. Trade lawyer Barry Appleton said it “moved some bricks around,” and Robert Glasgow of KPMG Law said more items are added than removed and expects a relatively small immediate impact (both via BNN Bloomberg). Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said he is ready to negotiate. We found no reaction to this swap from farm or grower groups, so they have not been heard yet.
The catches most people missed. Collins’s release counts nine categories and the proclamation counts 22 lines; both are right. Wooden packing boxes (4415.10.30) and large paper sacks (4819.30.00) are added while other boxes and sacks come off, and chest freezers (8418.30.00) are added while other refrigeration gear comes off, so check the exact line. There is no in-transit relief for newly covered goods (International Trade Insights). USMCA origin gives no protection to a covered line. The cocoa is sweetened cocoa powder (HTS 1806.10), a baking ingredient, not candy; chocolate is up 15.5 percent to $5.67 per package, which NBC via Quartz on Oct 12 attributes to a cocoa supply crisis, not this tariff.
What to do:
Farmers and packers: have your customs broker check every Canadian-sourced item against Annex I Part A (removed) and Part B (added) by HTS line before you order.
Time deliveries of Canadian cartons, crates and equipment to enter on or after Oct 30, because duty follows the entry date, and keep the entry paperwork.
Do not count on USMCA paperwork to protect a covered line, and keep every duty receipt in case the Gellert case opens a refund path. None exists today.
No USDA program was identified for this tariff, so do not plan around one.
Shoppers: expect little change at the shelf near term. The swap matters at the packing shed, and only if firms pass costs through (our analysis, not a sourced estimate).
Sources: White House fact sheet, Oct 23; Annex I, Oct 23; Global Trade Alert, accessed Oct 27; Agri-Pulse, Oct 23 (Daybreak reaction, Oct 26); Global News, Oct 23 to 24; Al Jazeera, Oct 20; FoodNavigator, Sept 8; The Packer, Aug 25; Holland & Knight, July 2026; Ginger Control, accessed Oct 27; Bar Harbor Story, Oct 23; Thompson Hine, Nov 2025; USDA ERS, accessed Oct 27; USTR New Jersey page, accessed Oct 27; USDA AMS retail report, Oct 23; NBC via Quartz, Oct 12.
Which mung beans were recalled for possible glass?
Vitamin Cottage Natural Food Markets (Natural Grocers) of Lakewood, Colorado, recalled Natural Grocers Brand Organic 2 lb Mung Beans, announced in an FDA notice on Thursday, October 22, 2026. Customers reported sharp glass fragments. No injuries have been reported.
Package: 2 lb clear plastic bag, UPC 000080112600
Pack dates, lower left of the label: 26-160, 26-173, 26-196, 26-224, 26-258
Sold at Natural Grocers stores in 22 states: AR, AZ, CO, IA, ID, KS, LA, MN, MO, MT, ND, NE, NM, NV, OK, OR, SD, TX, UT, WA, WI, WY
Runner-up: Imperio Distribution LLC of Elgin, Illinois, recalled about 946 lb of Fuego, Original and Limon beef jerky (2 oz bags) on Oct 24 because it was made without federal inspection, sold in seven states (IL, IN, IA, MI, MN, MO, WI), no illnesses reported. Flag: FSIS page not opened.
What to do: check your pantry for those pack dates. If you have the bag, stop using it and throw it out or return it for a refund. Call 303-226-1434.
Sources: FDA notice, Oct 22; Scripps/News5, Oct 26; Food Safety News, Oct 24; CBS Chicago, Oct 26.
Why do pumpkins cost what they do the week of Halloween?
USDA has no shipping point price for pumpkins, so these are terminal market prices: the wholesale market in a big city, not the farm price. On Oct 23, Howden 36 inch bins ran $180 to $200 per bin in New York and $160 to $180 per bin in Los Angeles, and pie pumpkins ran $22 to $25 per carton (USDA AMS). USDA’s retail report shows $5.54 per pumpkin across 2,958 ads, versus $5.36 last week (3,394 ads) and $5.15 a year ago (4,269 ads).
Our arithmetic: at $180 per bin and 40 to 60 large pumpkins per bin (Goebel Farms, a single grower source), that is about $3.00 to $4.50 per pumpkin at wholesale. Reasons for the gap: diesel and freight, a Texas grower reporting 77 days without rain (Western Belle Farm, one anecdote), and uneven Illinois yields, with low yields in the north and abundance in the south (Illinois Farm Bureau, Oct 7). University of Illinois Extension sees no shortage.
What to do: buy this week. A $5.54 pumpkin sits about $1 to $2.50 above our wholesale estimate (our arithmetic), and the Illinois Farm Bureau says local pumpkins can save a few dollars.
Sources: USDA AMS New York terminal, Oct 23; USDA AMS Los Angeles terminal, Oct 23; USDA AMS retail report, Oct 23; ABC News, Oct 7; Goebel Farms, accessed Oct 27; Vandalia Radio, Oct 5; RFD-TV, Oct 13.
What produce is in season and on sale in late October?
USDA’s retail report of Oct 23 counts 327,596 ads nationally, up 24 percent from 265,062 last week. Three items stand out, each listed as this week, last week and last year.
Kabocha squash: $1.21 per lb in 784 ads, versus $1.05 (395 ads) and $1.08 (430 ads). Ads roughly doubled.
Celery: $2.00 each in 1,856 ads, versus $1.41 (950 ads) and $1.85 (867 ads).
Lemons: $0.64 each in 3,013 ads, versus $0.68 (2,102 ads) and $0.69 (2,067 ads).
Celery and lemons are shipping from Oxnard and Santa Maria, California, and celery also from Salinas, per a Delbene Produce distributor report for the week ending Oct 3, which is more than three weeks old. California supplies US lemon demand from October through early June (Wonderful Citrus via FreshPlaza, Oct 13).
What to do: stock lemons now. UC ANR says refrigerated lemons keep about 4 to 6 weeks and juice freezes up to 4 months. Oregon State Extension says harvested kabocha ripens in storage, so keep the stems on.
Sources: USDA AMS retail report, Oct 23; Delbene Produce, Oct 3; FreshPlaza, Oct 13; UC ANR, accessed Oct 27; Oregon State Extension, accessed Oct 27.
Could you grow kiwi at home?
Hardy kiwi (Actinidia arguta) is the cold-climate choice: Oregon State says dormant vines of most varieties take about -10 to -25 F (Issai only 0 to -10 F), while fuzzy Hayward needs a warm climate. Oregon State Extension (PNW 507) lists mature hardy vines at 60 to 150 lb per vine for Ananasnaya and 50 to 90 lb for Issai, and Hayward at up to 100 lb per vine; Penn State says 50 to 100 lb. These are extension ranges, not a promise.
Spacing: 15 by 15 ft, about 194 vines per acre, on a T-bar trellis
Pollination: one male per 8 females (guideline: one male per 6 to 10 females)
Timeline: first commercial crop at 3 or more years, mature by year 5
Soil: pH 5.6 to 6.0, well drained
Risk: 30 F for just 30 minutes can severely damage new spring shoots
California 2025: 5,200 acres, $112.7 million (USDA NASS, May 2026)
A New Jersey invasive-species fact sheet lists hardy kiwi as an eradication-stage plant, so check local rules first.
What to do: OSU says plant in spring. This month, order plants, pick a site, test the soil and build the trellis. We do design and consulting nationwide, with installs local to Southern New Jersey: https://www.curatednature.co/backyard-fruit-profits
Sources: OSU PNW 507, rev. Mar 2021; Penn State Extension, Dec 17, 2024; USDA NASS, May 2026; UConn CIPWG invasive-species fact sheet, 2015.
How much did USDA pay New Jersey farmers, and what deadlines are coming?
USDA’s Farm Service Agency delivered about $6.28 million to New Jersey farmers in ARC/PLC (2025 crop) and CRP (2026) payments, per an Oct 20, 2026 release from State Executive Director Bob Andrzejczak in Hamilton Square. The release gives no split between programs. These payments mostly go to grain growers: corn, soybeans and wheat.
NJ CRP: 1,879 acres, 737 of them Grassland CRP
New base acres: 60,928.9 after a 3.69 percent proration
Payment limit: $160,000, up from $125,000
PLC triggered for seven crops: corn, sorghum, mustard seed, oats, soybeans, sunflower seed, wheat
Nationally: a record $13.8 billion in ARC/PLC for the 2025 crop, and $1.8 billion a year in CRP
Two dates matter: the 2026 crop year enrollment closes Dec 11, 2026, and the 2027 crop year opens Nov 2, 2026 and runs through Mar 15, 2027.
What to do: call your FSA office and confirm your enrollment before Dec 11. Readers outside New Jersey: the same deadlines apply at every county FSA office.
Sources: USDA FSA New Jersey release, Oct 20; USDA FSA New Jersey news, Oct 7 and 8 listings.
From the farm
We are back on the golf courses today, aerating ! 21 acres!
Own land? Stop mowing grass and start growing fruit
If you own a yard, a field or an unused corner, you may be mowing land that could grow berries, grapes or tree fruit. We design backyard orchards, vineyards and berry rows for landowners anywhere in the country, through remote consulting and design-only plans. Installation and ongoing management are local to Southern New Jersey. Reach out through https://www.curatednature.co/backyard-fruit-profits.
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