When Trade Wars Come to Your Shopping Basket: A Practical Guide

EU and Irish leaders have reached the moment where it’s time to grow massive spines. I’m not wise to most economic moves and the impacts, as I’m sure will appear abundantly clear in this article, but what’s right is right. Trump is now threatening to impose tariffs on the UK and EU countries as leverage unless Greenland is sold to the US.

To be clear about what’s actually happening: this is being reported as a negotiating tactic rather than imminent policy. Tariffs would likely apply to physical goods, not services. Timelines and scope can change quickly, and this could be political signalling rather than concrete trade policy. Still, the threat itself is worth taking seriously.

The EU needs to say: cool bruh, best of luck with that. Ireland needs to stop standing in the corner, afraid to move like that dinosaur from Jurassic Park with motion sensor eyes is in the same room. And we, the consumers, need to start paying attention to where our products come from. We should be trying to buy Irish, EU, or even (shudders) British products.

Understanding Tariffs Without the Economics Degree

A tariff is basically a tax on imported goods. It’s paid at the import level, but in reality it shows up in prices for consumers. Economically, it can raise costs even if you support the policy politically. The theory is that it protects domestic industries. The reality is that ordinary people usually end up paying more for everyday items, whilst politicians use them as bargaining chips.

If this escalates, the EU would likely respond with counter-tariffs. Trade wars rarely end with one measure. They tend to spiral, affecting ordinary consumers most whilst achieving questionable political outcomes.

Why Ireland’s Position Is Particularly Messy

Ireland’s situation is uniquely awkward. A huge chunk of Irish GDP is tied up in US multinationals based here. American firms dominate Irish exports, jobs, and tax receipts. We’ve built our economy around being an attractive base for US tech and pharmaceutical companies.

Here’s the problem: Ireland is also inside the EU’s trade bloc, so we don’t get to freestyle our response. We can’t negotiate separately or take an independent stance. When the EU responds to US tariffs, Ireland has to follow suit, even though it potentially hurts our economic model more than most other EU members. Hence, the standing very still in the corner, hoping nobody notices us.

The Reality Check: Not Everything Is Boycottable

Before we get into practicalities, let’s acknowledge something important: some US products are genuinely hard to avoid. The modern economy doesn’t divide neatly into national boxes anymore.

Focus on categories where consumers have real choice:

Easy switches: Fast food chains, soft drinks, snacks, shaving products, coffee pods, beer, breakfast cereals

Switch when convenient: Toothpaste, shampoo, clothes, trainers, cleaning products

Harder to replace: Cloud services, smartphones, operating systems (if even tarrifed)

Not realistic or potentially unsafe: Certain medicines, specialised medical devices, some software you depend on for work

This isn’t purity politics. Origin is messy. Don’t obsess over perfection. Aim for improvement where it’s actually feasible.

The Services Question: Netflix, Google, Meta, Amazon

Tariffs apply to physical goods, not services. Netflix won’t be affected. Neither will your Google Workspace subscription or Amazon Prime Video. This is important because it shows how modern trade leverage has shifted.

Europe has fewer physical exports to use as leverage against the US compared to its dependence on American tech platforms. Retaliation could shift towards US digital services through different mechanisms, regulatory measures, tax policies, or data localisation requirements. This is what a modern economy looks like: most value isn’t in shipping containers anymore.

Building a home server makes all of this surprisingly more achievable. You get to move away from Google Photos to Immich for example. No more Netflix, if you choose to sail the seven seas.

Shopping Triage: A Three-Tier Approach

Rather than telling you to figure it out yourself, here’s a practical framework:

Switch instantly (no real loss): Coca-Cola versus local brands, McDonald’s versus independent cafés, American snack brands versus European equivalents. These switches cost you nothing in convenience.

Switch when convenient: Next time you need toothpaste, shampoo, or trainers, check the alternatives. When your current bottle runs out or your shoes wear through, make a different choice. No need to bin what you already own.

Leave for now: Your phone, laptop, streaming subscriptions. These involve contracts, ecosystems, and genuine inconvenience. Tackle the easy stuff first.

The Barcode Trap

There are apps that scan barcodes and show country of origin. I’ve tried several. They’re mind-numbing to use thanks to ads, and I’ve yet to find one that works reliably. I might even try building one if needs be.

But here’s the complication: barcode prefixes often indicate where the barcode was issued, not manufacturing origin. “Made in EU” might still mean American company profits. “Made in Ireland” can still be an American-owned multinational plant.

This isn’t a reason to give up. It’s a reason to be realistic about what you’re actually achieving. You’re reducing American revenue, which matters. You’re not achieving perfect separation, which was never possible anyway.

The Contradiction I Need to Address

Earlier I said we should be trying to buy Irish or EU products, not US. That’s the actual stance. When I mentioned US in the original list, I meant Irish or EU made, including products manufactured in EU facilities even if the parent company is American-owned. Clarity matters here.

The goal is shifting where profits flow and where manufacturing happens. Complete decoupling isn’t realistic or probably even desirable long term. Strategic reduction is.

My Own Hypocrisy

I’ve dramatically reduced my McDonald’s intake from a few stops a month to just a handful of stops last year, usually because I was stuck and it’s all that was open whilst on the road. Whilst McDonald’s claims boycotts have no impact, they certainly do impact the bottom line. The company remains profitable but less so, and definitely feeling the pinch.

Yet I’m a hypocrite. There are countless American products I recommend in other contexts. My laptop is American. My phone’s operating system is American. Much of the software I depend on is American. I’m not pretending to be pure about this.

What I’m hoping is that we shift towards more Irish and EU-focused products where realistic alternatives exist. Not as a permanent boycott, but as a statement that Europe isn’t a bargain bin for American political leverage.

What Happens Next

Not everything can be solved by an app. Don’t be lazy and make an effort to find out where the products you buy come from. When you’re choosing between functionally identical products, pick the one that doesn’t fund the economy currently threatening yours.

This isn’t forever. This is us saying: you don’t get to treat Europe like a bargaining chip. We’ll go back to normal when the US starts acting normal. Until then, spend like your values matter.

At least for the next two years, until we give the US a chance to redeem itself. If we get that far.