Upside Down

Author

Evodince GmbH
May 06, 2025

Setting aside perishable foods, there are few days I shop without buying something “Made in the USA.”

Yesterday, it was a Master combination lock for my son’s school locker (Milwaukee, WI) and two bottles of Tabasco sauce (Avery Island, LA). Yeah, yeah—small change. I get it. But almost every prescription medication my family uses is also American-made. And I see more Fords than Toyotas here in Austria. I even see the occasional Dodge Ram pickup truck in Salzburg, trying to find parking in a city that measures spaces for Fiat 500s and horse-drawn carriages.

Which is why the growing backlash against US-made goods in Europe has, unfortunately, caught my attention. It’s subtle, but spreading.

Grocery, hardware, and electronics stores are now labeling products with “Made in the EU” signs that weren’t there two months ago. In my own feeds, I’m seeing a sharp rise in posts encouraging people to join “BuyFromEU” or “Boycott USA” groups. These communities are posting photos of shelves stocked with American products—Philadelphia cream cheese, Energizer batteries, Gillette razors, cans of Coca-Cola—turned upside down—to quietly discourage buyers.

American goods—once shorthand for quality and aspiration—are increasingly being recast as political statements. Objects of protest.

What happens when market protest becomes habit? When consumer preferences that took decades to build… begin to break down? What will be the long-term impact of American products Europeans once loved now caught in the crosshairs of a bilateral trade dispute?

Food for thought. And for me, always enjoyed with several dashes of Avery Island, Louisiana’s Tabasco hot sauce, on top.

See you Friday, friends.

Leigh Fatzinger, Editor
Salzburg, Austria / 6 May 2025

From France

The European Union hopes to offer an alternative for researchers and, by the same token, "defend our strategic interests and promote a universalist vision," an official in Macron's office told French news agency AFP.

The French president had already last month appealed to foreign, notably US, researchers to "choose France" and unveiled plans for a funding programme to help universities and other research bodies cover the cost of bringing foreign scientists to France.

Evodince helps organizations deliver email briefings their audiences actually want to read.

Built for executives, policy leaders, and mission-driven teams, our branded newsletters combine high engagement with privacy-first analytics—no tricks, no noise. If your email strategy still feels stuck in 2015, it’s time to turn the page.

From Belgium

Czech Deputy Health Minister Jakub Dvořáček emphasised the importance of motivating pharmaceutical companies to prioritise European manufacturing and research.

He advocates for offering a longer regulatory data protection (RDP) period, during which companies have exclusive rights to their data, as a key incentive. This exclusivity allows innovative firms to recover investments and earn profits without immediate competition from generic drug manufacturers.

📖 Read last Friday’s edition of Evodince: EU Trade – Evodince Media (Austria) – 2 May 2025

Evodince runs on customer and reader support—
no ads, no outside funding.

If this briefing brought you clarity or value, pass it on. Share it with two colleagues who’d appreciate it, and encourage them to subscribe.

Tuesday’s Trade Talking Points

🇺🇸 Country-of-Origin is Now Emotional
“Made in the USA” labels are being reinterpreted in Europe—sometimes literally turned upside down. Brand trust abroad now hinges on cultural awareness, not just product quality.

💊 Pharma and Health Are on the EU Radar
European policymakers are calling for domestic production incentives. US firms in regulated sectors should prepare for shifting supply chain expectations.

🧬 STEM Talent is in Play
The EU is actively recruiting American researchers amid US funding cuts. Companies competing for top minds may need to rethink incentives and retention.

🥷 Consumer Backlash Moves Quietly
From shelf signs to online boycotts, protest is becoming preference. Don’t wait for headlines—track sentiment shifts at the ground level.

This is new. Europe is not prone to boycotts, unlike the Middle East, for example, where Starbucks and Coca-Cola are still recovering from a backlash linked to US support for Israel. On Thursday, McDonald's CEO, Chris Kempczinski, said that the fast-food chain's global consumer surveys had detected a rise in anti-American sentiment, notably in Canada – which is not surprising given Trump's direct attacks – but also in Northern Europe, where Denmark is also feeling the US president's envy through his designs on Greenland.

Buy American? No Thanks, Europe Says, as Tariff Backlash Grows - New York Times (United States) - 6 May 2025

Note: How Evodince Obtains The News We Use in our Briefings

Evodince believes in and supports high-quality journalism. We understand reporting and delivering accurate news does not come free. While we share snippets of news stories in our briefings, it is also important to extend support of these publications by clicking on the links to their stories, visiting their sites, supporting their advertisers, and, if possible, subscribing to their publications. Thank you.

Reply

or to participate.