‘Let’s Brew It In The United States’: Teamsters Urges Trump to Impose Steep Tariffs on Mexican Beer

(Photo: Christoph Hardt/Geisler-Fotopres/picture-alliance/dpa/AP Images)

The International Brotherhood of Teamsters is imploring the Trump administration to slap Mexican beer brands like Corona and Modelo with tariffs as high as 75% in a bid to create more jobs for American workers.

The Teamsters have reportedly made a filing with the Office of the US Trade Representative, arguing that Mexico’s targeted tax incentives and low labor costs have made it all but impossible for American brewers to compete. The filing comes days ahead of the latest round of trade negotiations between the United States, Mexico and Canada, and could become a bargaining tool if the Trump administration considers it seriously.

“We can brew Modelo beer. It’s the same recipe. Let’s brew it in the United States,” Sean O’Brien, general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, told Fox News. “We are very good at producing goods and services in this country.”

According to outlets that have viewed the filing, the union says Mexican beer production has increased by 85% since 2014, and plans to add another 19 million to 23 million hectoliters of production capacity over the next five years. Much of this is attributed to “Plan México,” a recently implemented industrialization strategy that has provided steep tax incentives to export-oriented manufacturers in the country.

Around 80% of Mexico’s beer exports flow to the United States. Nearly all of the most prominent names — Corona, Modelo, Tecate and Pacífico, among them — are owned by American brewing conglomerates like Anheuser-Busch and Constellation Brands. Though the Teamsters did not mention this fact outright in its filing, it stands to reason that the union believes these companies have the means to shift production north of the border if given a sufficient push.

Since the vast majority of American macrobreweries are unionized, Teamsters members would theoretically be the first ones to benefit. The union adds that the tariffs would also help farmers who grow barley, rice and hops, aluminum packagers and truckers.

“I’m pro-America, pro-American worker, pro American jobs,” O’Brien added. “So if there’s an opportunity to tariff Mexican beer in this situation, which is gonna provide opportunity for our current members, which we have tens of thousands in the brewery and distribution industry, then I’m all for tariffs and all for keeping American jobs in America.”

The proposal has already provoked debate on both sides of the political aisle.

Earlier this year, a bipartisan group of Congressional lawmakers cautioned the Trump administration against Mexican beer tariffs, citing many of the same pro-American job benefits as their Teamster counterparts. Signees noted that over 80% of US barley exports go to Mexico, where they’re overwhelmingly used to brew beer that ends up on American shelves. Were the Mexican government to impose retaliatory tariffs, lawmakers believe that rural farmers could lose business.