Irish whiskey producers are facing a severe 200% tariff on exports to America, as concerns rise that the dispute between the US and EU may escalate into a full-scale transatlantic trade war.
Donald Trump threatened to impose the new round of tariffs just a day after meeting the Taoiseach in Washington.
As part of retaliatory tariffs on the US, the European Union is proposing a 50% tax on US whiskey.
On Newstalk Breakfast this morning, CEO of Kinsale Spirit Colin Ross said his company’s US market could “disappear fairly quickly indeed”.
“We spent a lot of money building up the brand and are spending money on an ongoing basis and, you know, it could be wiped out in a matter of months," he said.
“We have some stock in the US but once that’s gone the tariffs may kick in on the next batch, which will put it out of the price of most people’s pockets.
“We use the tagline, ‘The best value Irish whiskey in the world’, in the US because it’s got the medals and it’s got the price and it’s got the taste and all that.
“That’s the kind of pitch that works at the moment when people are watching the pennies.”
You can listen back to the full episode here:
Main image: Bottles of Irish whiskey. From left, Bushmills, Redbrest, Kilbeggan, Connemara, Tyrconnell and Tullamore Dew. Image: George Sweeney / Alamy. 11 September 2013
