US President Donald Trump has issued an executive order exempting a number of food products, including coffee, bananas, and beef, from his broad tariffs.

The move comes as his administration faces increasing pressure from rising prices. While Trump initially dismissed worries about the expense of living, he has become more concerned on the problem following his Republican Party’s poor result in last week’s elections.

The White House’s list of exemptions includes dozens of goods ranging from avocados and tomatoes to coconuts and mangoes.

The Trump administration stated on Friday that these commodities cannot be produced in sufficient quantities locally.

Trump has consistently stated that his tariffs, which are presently set at 10% on imports from all countries plus additional duties on several trading partners, will not raise costs for US consumers. He further said that affordability was a “new word” and a “con job” by Democrats.

He has maintained that the levies are necessary to minimize the US trade deficit, or the difference between the value of products purchased from other countries and those sold to them. Trump has claimed that the United States has been exploited by “cheaters” and “pillaged” by foreigners, and that increased tariffs will encourage Americans to buy American goods instead.

However, shopping costs and the rising price of beef have become a political issue for Trump. Last week, he demanded a probe into the meatpacking business, accusing companies of “illicit collusion, price fixing, and price manipulation”.

He has attempted to mobilize support for the levies by issuing $2,000 tariff rebate checks to Americans, despite the fact that the US Supreme Court is presently debating whether Trump has the legal jurisdiction to impose them.

However, the current exclusions represent a turnaround by the Trump administration, which intends to cut prices by reducing duties on certain food staples.

Speaking to reporters on Friday, Trump stated that the decision will affect products that are not manufactured in the United States, “so there is no protection for our industries or food products.”

He also stated that he does not believe more policy rollbacks would be required in the future, stating, “I don’t think it’ll be necessary.”

“We just put a little bit of a rollback on some things, such as coffee, which was a little bit expensive. “They’ll be on the low side in a very short period of time,” Trump stated.

Economists have cautioned that corporations will pass on the cost of tariffs to customers in the form of increased pricing.

While inflation remained lower than many analysts had predicted in September, most products monitored in the Department of Labor’s inflation report showed price rises, with food up 2.7% from the previous year.

The Trump administration’s new tariff exclusions for food imports will take effect retroactively on Thursday, November 13 at midnight, according to the White House.

In another effort to address consumer worries about supermarket prices, the Trump administration announced that import duties on coffee and bananas would be reduced as part of trade agreements with four Latin American countries.

This week, Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent both promised to cut coffee prices by 20% in the United States this year.

What items are no longer subject to tariffs?

The White House issued a list of more than 100 products that are no longer subject to the tariffs. Several of them include:

Coffee

Cocoa

Black tea

Green tea

Vanilla beans

Beef goods include high-quality cuts, bone-in and boneless cuts, corned beef, some frozen foods, and salted, brined, dried, or smoked meat.

Fruits, including acai, avocadoes, bananas, coconuts, guavas, limes, oranges, mangoes, plantains, pineapples, various peppers and tomatoes

Spices, including allspice, bay leaves, cardamom, cinnamon, cloves, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, curry, dill fennel seeds, ginger, mace, nutmeg, oregano, paprika, saffron and turmeric

Nuts, grains, roots and seeds, such as barley, Brazil nuts, capers, cashews, chestnuts, macadamia nuts, miso, palm hearts, pine nuts, poppy seeds, tapioca, taro and water chestnuts