Shutdown saves spaghetti, for now, with tariff on Italian pasta delayed

You may not have to say farewell to your favorite fettuccine until April.

The government’s plan to impose a huge tariff on imported Italian pasta, which would effectively double prices and leave store shelves empty, sent shock waves through the Italian American community and food connoisseurs across the country.

Yet thanks to the recent government shutdown, the levy planned for the new year has been delayed until at least February and possibly this spring, a Trump administration official told The Washington Times.

That gives the Italian companies more time to work with the Commerce Department to possibly reduce or eliminate the penalty.

“Due to the government shutdown this fall, the final determination is now scheduled for February 18, 2026, with a possible extension of up to 60 days,” the official said.

President Trump has been blamed for rising prices tied to his tariffs, including a 15% levy on European Union goods that Mr. Trump negotiated in July.

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The Commerce Department imposed a penalty of nearly 92% on Italian pasta after an anti-dumping investigation that began during the final year of the Biden administration. The Commerce Department has been conducting surveillance of potential pasta dumping from Italy since 1996.

The latest tariff threat followed complaints from two U.S. producers: macaroni and cheese maker Wacky Mac and Ronzoni, which produces a full line of pasta.

They accused Italian pasta exporters of artificially lowering prices to expand their sales in U.S. grocery stores, specialty markets and restaurants.

Commerce officials initiated a pricing review in August 2024.

They examined 18 Italian pasta companies that export to the United States and decided in September that a 92% anti-dumping levy should be imposed on 13 companies.

They recommended the levy after two of the companies, Garofalo and La Molisana, “did not provide information requested by Commerce” and were determined to be “uncooperative.”

Subsequent requests for data from Commerce Department officials went unanswered. Officials responded in September by imposing a preliminary “weighted average dumping margin” for all 13 pasta companies, effective from July 1, 2023, to June 30, 2024.

Commerce Department officials accuse the companies of selling their products in the United States at approximately 92% less than the normal value during that time.

A final determination on setting the duty has been postponed a few times, leaving the Trump administration in an uncomfortable position of angering legions of Italian food fans, not to mention Italian pasta producers who say the tariffs will devastate sales in the U.S., their second-largest market.

Italian pasta is revered for its “al dente” texture produced by simple ingredients of durum wheat semolina and water, and a low-temperature, slower drying process.

Combined with the existing EU tariffs negotiated by Mr. Trump, the 13 pasta companies face levies of up to 107%, which would be passed on to consumers or result in the companies ceasing to export their pasta products to the U.S.

The Trump administration official said the 92% tariff was set by the Commerce Department, not the president, and will not lead to the kinds of negotiations Mr. Trump is engaged in regarding the tariffs he has imposed unilaterally. He can’t interfere.

Instead, the companies must work directly with the Commerce Department to provide the data needed for their review.

“The anti-dumping duties are set by an independent process that the administration has no control over, and the preliminary 92% duty was determined after the pasta makers in question did not fully comply with a routine data request,” the official said.

The Times has reached out to the Commerce Department.

Most of the pasta companies on the list voluntarily provided sales data to the Commerce Department. Major exporters La Molisana and Pasta Garofalo have denied accusations of dumping.

La Molisana argued in a brief submitted to the Commerce Department last month that the U.S. government miscalculated the price differential by treating net prices as gross prices.

Barilla, which also produces a U.S. product, faces the penalty on its imported Italian pasta.

“The Barilla Group is affected by the Department of Commerce’s preliminary decision as it currently stands. We are therefore evaluating possible initiatives ahead of the final determination next year. Since the matter is still under evaluation by the DoC, Barilla is unable to provide further comment at this stage,” a spokesman said.

Rummo, which is on the list of pasta importers facing the tariff, warned that it would have to increase the cost of its products if the penalty is implemented.

Rummo pasta was on sale for $3 at a Giant grocery store in Edgewater, Maryland, last week. Barilla’s American-made pasta was available at the same store for $1.99 per box.