Christopher Ranch prepares farm for realities of new tariffs

GILROY, Calif., March 5, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The new administration's tariffs might be a concern for some companies, but as the United States' largest family-owned and operated garlic farm, Christopher Ranch stands ready to offer all-American garlic products to retailers nationwide. The additional 10% tariff on Chinese imports will continue to strengthen the growth of the California-grown garlic market. 

In 2018, Christopher Ranch successfully worked with the government to enact a 25% tariff on Chinese garlic that remains in effect today, and with the new administration's two rounds of 10% tariffs, Chinese garlic is now impacted with a 45% tariff. This will make a tremendous difference for domestic garlic industry and employment in the garlic capital of the world, Gilroy CA.

Ken Christopher, Executive Vice President of Christopher Ranch, said, "While we understand that tariffs and trade wars may not be in the best interest of our nation in the long run, there are industries that can and will benefit from these actions and can result in increased domestic production, increased employment, greater food safety, and a more stable supply chain. In protecting and promoting domestic industry, this Administration's decision will likely benefit the specialty crops in the US agriculture industry."

American garlic growers have been negatively impacted since the early 1990's, when China was flooding the US with illegally imported Chinese product and selling it below the cost of production. This is a trade practice known as "dumping" (when companies or countries artificially sell below the price of production to gain market share). While there used to be 12 commercial-scale garlic farms in America, due to the illegal practice of dumping Chinese product, there are now only three. 

Christopher Ranch is proud to be the nation's largest producer of US-grown garlic products and while we understand the complexity of this macroeconomic situation, we fully support efforts that protect specialty crop farmers.

Ken Christopher is available for comment. 

About Christopher Ranch

As the nation's largest domestic fresh garlic grower/packer, Christopher Ranch is a family-owned agribusiness with a 70-year tradition of supplying the finest garlic products to retail, industrial, and foodservice customers. Proudly located in Gilroy, the "Garlic Capital of the World," Christopher Ranch ships over 100 million pounds of California heirloom garlic annually. www.christopherranch.com

Medica Contact: Tim Ahlin, [email protected], (831) 801-3766

SOURCE Christopher Ranch