April 2025 has brought more than spring weather. With the announcement of sweeping new tariffs by US President Donald Trump, including a blanket 10% tariff on all US imports and higher rates for specific countries, Ireland’s manufacturing sector has been put on high alert.
While the pharma giants are well-shielded by global supply chains, IP licensing models, and long-term contracts, food and drink manufacturers—from dairy and whiskey giants to artisan exporters—don’t have the same cushion. For many, this is not just a policy change. It’s a direct hit to the bottom line.
Dubbed “Liberation Day,” Trump’s tariff move includes:
Public positioning around “economic independence,” but a private signal that this is a negotiating lever ahead of the November elections.
The US is one of the most valuable export markets for Irish food and drink. From grass-fed beef and cheddar to premium whiskey and cream liqueurs, Irish brands have carved out high-value niches. But when those products hit American ports with an additional 20% cost, that niche advantage shrinks.
For many exporters, margins are already under pressure from rising input costs and tightening sustainability regulations. The new tariffs could be the tipping point that forces:
You might hear, "But Ireland's biggest exporter is pharma, and they're not worried". True - but they also weren't targeted.
Pharmaceutical products were deliberately excluded from the new tariffs, and for one very strategic reason: Trump didn’t want to risk a sudden 20% jump in medicine prices for American consumers. It’s a political third rail, one he wasn’t willing to touch, for now.
In addition to that, the pharma industry operates very differently:
For Irish food and drink manufacturers, it’s a different story. You’re price-sensitive, export-led, and now facing a 20% cost penalty at the US border. And unlike pharma, you can’t pass that cost along as easily.
While you can’t control US policy, you can control what’s within your own walls.
And this is where a silver lining emerges.
Irish manufacturers working with CoolPlanet have already discovered that energy is often the single most under-optimised cost in their business.
With energy prices still volatile and carbon costs climbing, reducing your energy consumption by 15–20% isn’t wishful thinking — it’s a competitive edge. In fact, CoolPlanet has helped companies cut their energy bills by as much as 20%, which in the current moment, is the exact same value as the new tariff being levied on your products.
In other words: every euro saved in your energy bill is a euro you can use to neutralise the tariff hit.
This is not the time to panic. It's time to get sharper.
Because while you may not have a vote in US trade policy, you absolutely have a say in how resilient your business is to it.
Curious what a 20% energy saving could look like for your site? Let's talk!