The Trump administration’s threat to charge Chinese-built and flagged ships seven-figure fees to enter U.S. ports would cause farmers to lose overseas customers, according to the Agriculture Transportation Coalition.

The fees will be passed on, making U.S. farm goods more expensive and causing price-sensitive foreign buyers to switch trading partners, coalition executive director Peter Friedman said.

“In every part of the country, every agricultural organization is worked up over this one,” said Friedman, speaking March 19 at an online forum hosted by the National Agricultural Law Center.

An investigation last year by the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative concluded China is seeking to dominate global shipping and that trade sanctions are warranted.

The investigation was released four days before President Trump took office. His administration embraced the report and is considering several ways to penalize Chinese shipping and revitalize U.S. shipbuilding.

The contemplated actions include charging China–operated ships $1 million to enter U.S. ports and charging China-built vessels $1.5 million.

The administration is also considering requiring a certain percentage of U.S. farm goods to be exported in U.S.-flagged ships. The percentage would begin at 1% the first year and rise to 15% in seven years.

Friedman called it the “worst part” because of the lack of U.S. ships serving international commerce.

U.S. trade officials will have public hearings on the proposal March 24 and March 26. In a preview of his testimony, World Shipping Council President Joe Kramek said the proposed actions would hurt businesses, consumers and especially farmers.

“Given the small number of existing U.S.-built vessels and the lack of existing U.S. shipyard capacity, the proposed requirements for exportation on U.S.-built vessels would not be realistic for many years into the future,” he said.

China owns about 20% of the world’s shipping fleet and builds a majority of ships. China frames its ambitions to dominate global shipping in “nationalistic terms” and as “a zero-sum contest pitting companies it controls against all others,” according to the U.S. trade investigation.

The Northwest Seaport Alliance, a partnership between the ports of Seattle and Tacoma, is concerned the trade actions would cause ships to divert to Canadian and Mexican ports.

The ports will lose jobs and exports will lose access to international markets, Seattle Port Commissioner Sam Cho stated in a preview of his remarks.

Friedman said shipping companies, faced with hefty entry fees, may skip stopping at smaller ports, forcing West Coast farm goods to be transported by trucks and trains longer distances to reach larger ports, such as in Los Angeles and Long Beach.

The decline of U.S. shipbuilding began before the rise of China’s shipping industry, according to the China Shipowners Association.

Reviving U.S. shipbuilding “runs counter to fundamental market realities,” such as higher labor costs and weaker supply chains, according to the association.

China’s shipping industry has helped the U.S. economy by providing reliable service and the actions proposed by U.S. trade officials would hurt farm exports, according to the association.