Load up on linguine and stock up on spaghetti. In the new year, high-quality pasta may be a lot harder to come by in American stores. Several weeks ago, the U.S. Commerce Department announced that, starting in January, most pasta imported from Italy could be subject to a preliminary 92 percent tariff—on top of the 15 percent blanket duty on goods from the European Union. Outraged Italian pasta manufacturers are threatening to pull their products from American shelves.

The proposed tariff, the result of a yearlong investigation into the pasta industry, targets 13 Italian companies that have allegedly undercut U.S. manufacturers by selling underpriced pasta. Pasta tensions between the U.S. and Italy have been simmering since the 1990s, but this new proposal has turned up the heat. White Hou

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