‘Don’t take him literally,’ Moe says on Trump fertilizer tariff threats

Leaders and producers in Saskatchewan are remaining optimistic following U.S. President Donald Trump’s threat of “very severe” fertilizer tariffs, saying they are more likely to be costly on American farmers than producers in Canada.

In response to a reporter Monday, Trump said he may tariff Canadian fertilizer “if we have to” to bolster domestic production.

While this rings as a phrase of uncertainty for Saskatchewan — where the largest share of potash is produced in the world — Premier Scott Moe is not fully buying it.

“You need to take the president very seriously, but maybe don’t take him literally on everything that he says,” Moe told reporters at a real estate event in Saskatoon Tuesday.

Moe added that there is “no room” to increase costs on American farmers and that new tari