If your supply chain feels like it’s constantly being yanked in a dozen directions, you’re not imagining things. In 2025, the food logistics landscape is being impacted by policy shifts, Food Tariff Costs, and cold chain disruptions, making it challenging to maintain goods movement and margins.
For food manufacturers and distributors, this volatility adds real pressure. The rules can change overnight, leaving your carefully built strategy scrambling to keep up. Reacting quickly is important, but building a structure that adapts smoothly and avoids unnecessary risk or cost is what truly makes the difference.
That starts with rethinking where and how you warehouse.
Tariffs Are Raising the Stakes in Food Logistics
The growing uncertainty around Food Tariff Costs is making food logistics increasingly complex.
It’s no longer just about industrial goods. Tariff hikes are touching packaging materials, preservatives, and even temperature-sensitive goods. That means your inputs cost more, and your exports face unpredictable duties. What looks like a manageable 10% tariff on frozen goods can quickly erode profits when applied across dozens of SKUs.
The effects go beyond pricing. Tariffs can add risk at every point in the cold chain. Whether your goods are delayed at customs or stuck in port due to policy confusion, the result is the same: potential spoilage, costly rerouting, and disrupted delivery timelines.
If you’re importing perishable food from overseas, these hits are already landing. It’s forcing a lot of operators to take a second look at how their supply chains are structured and to ask whether there’s a better way to manage the fallout.
Canadian Warehousing Creates Breathing Room
To get ahead of these risks, many companies are moving their warehousing closer to the border, but not across it.
This approach allows for:
- Delayed Food Tariff Costs exposure: By warehousing in Canada, goods can be brought into North America without immediately triggering U.S. import duties, giving you more time to plan strategically. By warehousing in Canada, goods can be brought into North America without immediately triggering U.S. import duties, giving you more time to plan strategically.
- Better timing on customs clearance: Staging inventory near the border allows you to control when shipments cross, reducing the risk of delays tied to unexpected policy changes or customs backlogs.
- Added flexibility in responding to demand shifts: With your product close to key markets, you can react quickly to changing customer needs, shifting inventory as demand fluctuates without overcommitting.
Warehousing north of the border also reduces reliance on congested ports and gives your logistics more breathing room. You’re not racing against customs delays with time-sensitive products. Instead, you’ve got a buffer that can help you adapt to new policies, seasonal demand, or distribution hiccups.
Cold Chain Reliability Is Non-Negotiable
No matter how well you plan, if your cold chain isn’t airtight, none of it matters.
The logistics of transporting and storing perishable food are unforgiving. One break in temperature control, one delayed scan, or one missed delivery window can mean thousands of dollars in losses.
This is where your warehousing partner becomes a critical part of your strategy.
Look for 3PL providers with:
- Certified food-grade storage facilities
- Real-time inventory management systems
- Reliable cold chain tracking technology
- Strong knowledge of cross-border compliance
Experience matters here. You want a partner who understands how to handle food safely, who knows how to move quickly when regulations change, and who can offer contingency planning when the unexpected happens.
Proximity to U.S. Markets Means Faster Fulfillment
Storing your goods just a few hours from major U.S. cities helps position your business to respond quickly and competitively to market demand.
Warehousing in Ontario, for example, puts your product close to key border crossings into Michigan, Ohio, and New York. When your team is ready to deliver, the goods don’t have far to go. With accurate documentation and proper compliance measures already in place, crossing the border becomes smoother and faster.
Compare that with relying on longer-distance shipping routes or clearing customs at congested coastal ports. It’s easy to see where delays creep in and how quickly they can impact customer satisfaction.
When your goods are warehoused close to the U.S. border, delivery windows shrink, transportation costs go down, and product freshness improves across the board. This kind of proximity leads to a more reliable and responsive supply chain, giving your operation a clear advantage in both speed and service quality.
Smaller, Smarter Supply Chains Perform Better
A streamlined and localized supply chain delivers real strategic value, helping businesses stay competitive in a volatile market.
We’re seeing a shift away from sprawling logistics models toward more focused, agile systems. That means sourcing globally if needed, but warehousing closer to your markets. When tariffs shift or supply chains get disrupted, localized inventory gives you options.
Operators who embrace this model are:
- Responding faster to policy changes
- Scaling up or down with seasonal demand
- Testing new markets without long-term investment
The size of your footprint matters less than how well it fits your operational goals and market demands.
Wills Transfer Can Help You Stay Cold, Compliant, and Cost-Effective
At Wills Transfer, we work closely with food manufacturers and distributors to create flexible, tariff-aware logistics solutions that protect your margins and keep your cold chain intact.
With over eight decades of experience, we understand the demands of storing and transporting temperature-sensitive goods. Our certified facilities and advanced technology help ensure compliance, reduce risk, and give you visibility across every step of your inventory journey.
We provide a comprehensive range of services to support your logistics goals, including order fulfillment, pick and pack services, asset tagging, container de-stuffing, and refrigerated storage. These services are fully customizable to align with the unique needs of your operation.
Our team has the tools and experience to strengthen your inventory management processes and help reduce your Food Tariff Costs and overall logistics spend. From frozen seafood and pre-packaged meals to fresh produce, we handle time-sensitive goods with precision and care. Our goal is to keep you ahead of regulatory changes and ensure dependable, efficient delivery across your supply chain.
If you’re ready to take control of your cold chain and reduce the impact of tariffs on your bottom line, give us a call at 613-704-7549 or connect with us online.
Let’s build a smarter, more resilient supply chain together.