The announcement today by the Trump administration is a slap in the face for the nation's beef export industry.
Here in Gippsland, we have a number of first-class export abattoirs that supply top quality beef to the US market.
These businesses will find life considerably tougher as a result of these new tariffs and have every right to feel angry and frustrated with today's announcement.
It will only lead to increased costs in the US market whilst penalising Australian beef producers in the process.
The imposition of these tariffs is not the action of a friend and one of Australia's closest allies. It is a hostile action and one which I will be fighting in every way possible.
Our beef is renowned not only for its rich flavour and tenderness, but also our strict quality and biosecurity standards. Our farmers will never waiver from those high standards and neither should we when showing them our support.
