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I've roasted coffee for 25 years. The industry was in denial about Trump's tariffs until they disrupted our imports.
Business Insider via msn ^ | Apr 12, 2025 | Jordan Hart

Posted on 04/12/2025 8:46:56 AM PDT by where's_the_Outrage?

TJ Semanchin is the co-owner of Wonderstate Coffee, a Wisconsin-based coffee roaster.

Donald Trump's 10% blanket tariffs mean Semanchin's company will have to make some hard decisions.

Wonderstate typically imports 40,000 pounds of coffee in one transaction.

This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with 51-year-old TJ Semanchin, the co-owner of Wonderstate Coffee. Business Insider has confirmed Semanchin's identity and role at the company. The piece has been edited for length and clarity.

I've been in the coffee business for the last 25 years. Before that, I was living in Latin America studying issues around sustainable development in coffee lands.

After moving to a small rural town in Wisconsin in 2005, my wife and I started what was Kickapoo Coffee at the time — we've since rebranded — with our business partner, Caleb Nichols. We're a small company. We employ 85 people here in Wisconsin.

Today, Donald Trump's tariffs are 10% across the board, and we're in a business climate where there's so much uncertainty. You can't produce coffee in the United States. There's no replacement.

(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...


TOPICS: Agriculture; Business/Economy; Chit/Chat
KEYWORDS: americalasttrolls; coffee; concerntroll; concerntrolling; fakenews; internationaltrade; jillsbox; jordanhart; losing; magaowngoal; surrendered; tarffisaretaxes; tariffs; tds; tradegoods; wheresloveofcountry; wheresloveofusa
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To: HYPOCRACY
"Good point. Coffee went up about 40% under Biden and there were no tariffs involved. Meanwhile inflation is reversing under Trump."

So is it likely that with the tariffs, we'll be paying what we paid under Biden's inflation?

41 posted on 04/12/2025 10:05:20 AM PDT by mass55th (“Courage is being scared to death, but saddling up anyway.” ― John Wayne)
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

Of a 10% increase in cost of goods is enough to distrupt their business they are doing it wrong.


42 posted on 04/12/2025 10:07:28 AM PDT by Fledermaus ("It turns out all we really needed was a new President!")
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To: JayGalt

Oh, no! What will Pajama Boy do?

/s /s /s


43 posted on 04/12/2025 10:08:00 AM PDT by HombreSecreto (The life of a repo man is always intense)
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

$20-$30 for only 12 ounces + $5 shipping. I see where the adjustment needs to happen...


44 posted on 04/12/2025 10:11:40 AM PDT by Openurmind
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

It’s Business Insider.

They will always take the side against Americans. Always.

They need to put Americans down to raise themselves up.


45 posted on 04/12/2025 10:12:22 AM PDT by Justa (Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people....)
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To: PGR88

Then what is the tariff for? Just to discourage imports regardless of whether there’s domestic competition or not?


46 posted on 04/12/2025 10:16:43 AM PDT by Romulus ( )
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To: mass55th

No idea. Nobody does. Anybody who says they do is lying.


47 posted on 04/12/2025 10:17:47 AM PDT by HYPOCRACY (Long live The Great MAGA Kangz!)
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To: Brian Griffin

Yeah my Dell 2-in-1 convertible laptop has the same issue, so I just bought a new machine.

Dell 16” 2-in-1 convertible, 1T SSD, 16G RAM - $550 from Best Buy online. I haven’t cleaned out the bloatware yet but it works just fine for this non-gamer.


48 posted on 04/12/2025 10:22:16 AM PDT by 1FreeAmerican
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To: The Spirit Of Allegiance

The problem is these costs tend to become baked in.


49 posted on 04/12/2025 10:23:15 AM PDT by joesbucks
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To: joesbucks

When we define spike we have a deal.


50 posted on 04/12/2025 10:25:39 AM PDT by JayGalt (Fight! Fight! Fight!)
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

I’m cool with coffee going up. It’s cheap already unless you buy at Starbucks.


51 posted on 04/12/2025 10:26:23 AM PDT by napscoordinator (DeSantis is a beast! Florida is the freest state in the country! )
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

Gee can’t you just pass on the 10% tariff price increase just like you would normal market price increases due to drought, bad crops etc.? My wife and I drink coffee from a small family owned roaster and would pay 10% more because we love fine coffee.


52 posted on 04/12/2025 10:37:01 AM PDT by The Great RJ
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

Probably adds about $0.15 to a cup of coffee.


53 posted on 04/12/2025 10:42:13 AM PDT by muskah (Loose lips sink ships)
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To: where's_the_Outrage?
"You can't produce coffee in the United States. There's no replacement."

Pssst! Puerto Rico produces coffee. I buy it all the time.

54 posted on 04/12/2025 10:43:10 AM PDT by PJ-Comix (Yes, I am the Toxic Troll Terminator)
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

So What, you are a slave to Nicauragua. You have known it for 25 years and accepted the risk. He is not going to get his 100% margins and will only get 80.


55 posted on 04/12/2025 10:45:45 AM PDT by bray (It's not racist to be racist against races the DNC hates.)
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

MSN probably can’t find Wisconsin on the map.
Somehow they found a no-name coffee company who probably donated to Harris.


56 posted on 04/12/2025 10:51:12 AM PDT by Zathras
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

Coffee used to be a huge business in Hawaii but regulations limited what they can sell and market.


57 posted on 04/12/2025 10:52:15 AM PDT by Zathras
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

He never said he voted for Trump, wonder why? He talks about the one on the water which he may pay or share it with his supplier. He knows futer containers will have the tariff negotiated in.

Never believe MSN lies.


58 posted on 04/12/2025 10:56:26 AM PDT by bray (It's not racist to be racist against races the DNC hates.)
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

The real solution is to genetically modify the coffee plant to be cold hardy and grow it in America.

Right now, I’m fine paying tariffs or reducing my consumption. But we could science our way out of the problem.


59 posted on 04/12/2025 11:10:31 AM PDT by Valpal1 (Not even the police are safe from the police!!!)
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To: where's_the_Outrage?

Tariff on coffee? This means war!


60 posted on 04/12/2025 11:10:39 AM PDT by marron
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