Peach producers in northern Greece are facing uncertainty following Donald Trump’s announcement of a 30% tariff on European products starting August 1 (peaches and other goods are already subject to a 17% tariff in the U.S.), as Greece is the world’s largest exporter of canned peaches, with one-fifth of exports going to the United States.
July is harvest season in the peach orchards of northern Greece, where pickers climb wooden ladders and carefully place the fruit into crates destined for factories that peel, slice, and can them.
In Greece, revenues from exports of canned and other packaged peach products exceed €600 million, with €120 million of that coming from the U.S. market.
Producers are therefore concerned that the tariffs will hurt demand for their products just as they prepare to ship the fresh harvest abroad, leaving them with little time to adapt or find alternative markets.
Exports to the U.S. represent about 4% of Greece’s total exports. Canned peaches and peach derivatives, olives, and olive oil are the top three agricultural products exported to the U.S., bringing in around €500 million annually.
More than 20,000 families—farmers and workers—rely on peach cultivation and processing plants in Central Macedonia for their income, according to Kostas Apostolou, head of the Union of Greek Canners, in comments to Reuters.
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