The U.S. Department of Agriculture rolled out a new plan to help the cattle industry and lower beef prices. (Photo by Preston Keres/USDA)
The U.S. Department of Agriculture rolled out a plan Wednesday to help “strengthen” the cattle industry and lower consumer prices for beef.
The plan comes three weeks into the government shutdown and shortly after a proposal from President Donald Trump to import beef from Argentina to lower prices, which was opposed by cattle industry groups.
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said in a news release Wednesday her department’s plan will “expedite deregulatory reforms, boost processing capacity” and work “across the government to fix longstanding common-sense barriers for ranchers.”
“America’s food supply chain is a national security priority for the Trump Administration,” Rollins said in the release. “We are committed to ensuring the American people have an affordable source of protein and that America’s ranchers have a strong economic environment where they can continue to operate for generations to come.”
Advancement of the plan includes a memorandum of understanding between USDA and the U.S. Department of the Interior, to “streamline and expand” ranchers’ abilities to graze on federal lands. The MOU is expected to be announced in November.
The plan said it will prioritize grazing on the estimated 24 million acres of vacant grazing allotments across the country, and USDA plans to prioritize grazing as a form of wildlife management. The Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service are also set to work with USDA to streamline permitting for ranchers to graze these lands.
Additionally, the plan calls for collaboration across several agencies to develop “new standards of evidence” that allow ranchers to be compensated for livestock they lose to wolves, coyotes, bears or other predators. The massive budget law passed and enacted this summer, known as the “one big beautiful bill” also allows the Farm Service Agency’s indemnity programs to give ranchers coverage of up to 100% of market value for livestock lost to predators.
Rollins said the plan incentivizes new producers to take up the “noble vocation of ranching.” The plan calls for the National Institute of Food and Agriculture to “include language encouraging applicants to promote outreach and education focused on ranching” on certain grant applications.
According to USDA data, cattle and cow inventories in the U.S. are on a declining trajectory, as are the number of farms in the country.
The second prong of the USDA plan calls for “transparent” labeling via Food Safety and Inspection Service enforcement of “Product of the USA” labeling, fair beef markets and enhanced local processing.
According to the plan, USDA will launch another round of funding for the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program to support small meat processors. The department will also reduce some of the regulations that increase costs for small processors.
The plan additionally calls for the advancement of deregulatory actions taken by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that impact the Waters of the United States rule, wastewater discharge requirements for processing facilities and effluent limitation guidelines.
According to the plan, deregulating these reforms to the Clean Water Act will prevent $1.1 billion to $7.8 billion in future compliance costs for livestock operations and meat processors.
These deregulating actions have been opposed by environmental groups who say it will lead to contaminated water supplies.
The final prong of the USDA plan aims to increase “domestic and international demand in tandem with domestic supply,” in order to “lessen the volatility of the boom/bust cycle.”
According to the document, the Food and Nutrition Service has already accepted more than $18 million in applications for “innovative” farm to school projects that encourage child nutrition providers to purchase from local ranchers and farmers.
The USDA plan was announced alongside leadership for the Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Small Business Administration. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. said the plan helps to restore “whole foods as the foundation of the American diet” and ends stigma against “natural saturated fat in beef and dairy products.”
“We will strengthen America’s ranching industry so families can choose nutrient-dense, minimally processed foods,” Kennedy said in the news release.
Ag and cattle groups focused on Argentina deal
The American Farm Bureau Federation and the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association remained focused Wednesday on opposing the president’s proposals to purchase beef from Argentina.
A communications director for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association said Wednesday the association did not have a comment on USDA’s plan, but said the industry association is “still extremely concerned” by Trump’s continued push to purchase Argentinian beef.
The president posted on Truth Social Wednesday that cattle ranchers “don’t understand” the benefits tariffs have had on their industry. Trump said cattle ranchers “have to get their prices down” for consumers.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, prices for ground chuck are at a historic high and have risen more than a dollar per pound since the beginning of the year.
American Farm Bureau Federation President Zippy Duvall said in a statement that farm families “feel the impact of higher grocery costs, but don’t get to set the prices.”
“This is a pivotal moment for America’s cattle farmers as they make decisions whether to restock their pastures,” Duvall said. “Farmers know America’s families prefer to buy U.S. beef. If expanded imports push farmers deeper into the red, we face the unintended consequence of increasing reliance on other countries for our food and weakening our ability to rebuild a strong American herd.”
Rollins, in a Tuesday interview with News Nation, said a deal to import from Argentina “won’t be too much of a huge differential” from what the U.S. currently imports in beef.
FSA office to open Thursday
USDA plans to reopen Farm Service Agency offices Thursday, despite the ongoing government shutdown, to help farmers during harvest season regain access to farm safety net programs.
Rollins made the announcement Tuesday on her social media, and later on several TV news shows. She said opening these offices will release over $3 billion in aid to farmers.
Rollins clarified in an interview with Fox Business the $3 billion comes from “current plans” and does not represent the aid package the administration “will soon announce” to help farmers harmed by Chinese trade disputes.
Due to retaliatory tariffs between the U.S. and China, the eastern nation has not bought any soybeans from U.S. farmers this season and instead purchased several shiploads from Argentina.
Politicians in farm states and commodity groups continue to call on the administration to develop an aid package and to restore trade relationships for farmers.
This story was originally produced by Iowa Capital Dispatch, which is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network which includes South Dakota Searchlight, and is supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity.