President Trump’s new tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China will be met with retaliatory tariffs and other measures against Kentucky’s signature bourbon industry. Cordell Lawrence is the co-founder and CEO of Eastern Light Distilling in Morehead. He said as a contract distiller, most of what they distill is for other brands and won’t hit the market until next year – and it’s the larger bourbon makers that are more likely to be hurt.
“There could be some short-term pain points. But by and large, you know, the mid-sized and craft sized distilleries typically don't have a lot of international exposure in terms of risk of their product being exported in this kind of retaliatory tariff environment.”
Lawrence said despite the short-term pain, he’s confident the $9 billion Kentucky bourbon industry will survive, perhaps by looking more to other foreign markets.
“We feel for our brothers and sisters within the industry, because they likely will be more so impacted if they are within those larger brand portfolios owned by the larger conglomerates. But that being said, our industry has an uncanny ability, I will say, of overcoming obstacles historically.”
In a statement Tuesday, Kentucky Distillers Association President Eric Gregory said the return of retaliatory tariffs on American whiskey will have far-reaching consequences across Kentucky, which is home to 95 percent of the world’s bourbon.
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