U.S. to Boost Beef Imports to Address High Prices, Trump Says--Update

By Patrick Thomas, Philip Wegmann and Gavin Bade

President Trump announced a plan to temporarily allow more foreign beef imports into the U.S. without paying higher tariffs, his latest move aimed at easing a run-up in beef prices for American shoppers.

Trump, in a social-media post on Friday, said the Trump administration, for the next 90 days, will allow up to 300,000 metric tons of ground beef to be imported into the U.S. without triggering higher tariff rates. "We have a commitment that this beef will be sold at 25 percent below current market prices," Trump said.

The White House and the Agriculture Department didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. The administration hasn't yet publicly released documents implementing Trump's directive.

While the administration has been dogged by record-high beef prices, American cattle and rancher groups have pushed back against importing foreign beef. The National Cattlemen's Beef Association, the largest trade group for cattle ranchers, said Friday it was disappointed in Trump's move.

"While America's cattle producers share the goal of keeping groceries affordable for consumers, flooding the market with government-subsidized, below-market beef is not the way to rebuild the American cattle herd," said Colin Woodall, the group's chief executive officer.

Reducing beef prices has been a priority for the Trump administration, which is feeling pressure to convince Americans that it is taking steps to tame food inflation. Beef has been one of the most stubborn sources of food inflation for U.S. consumers over the past year and a half.

The administration had planned in May to suspend the annual tariff-rate quota-which applies a higher tariff rate after a certain level of beef imports is reached-on all beef-exporting nations, The Wall Street Journal reported. Those plans were delayed following an outcry from some congressional Republicans and cattle rancher groups.

The shortage of cattle in the U.S. has been driving up livestock costs, making it expensive for meatpackers such as Tyson Foods and JBS to process cattle. Last week, Tyson said it was closing a major beef processing plant in Illinois, the second one it has shuttered this year.

The U.S. started the year with the smallest herd since the 1950s, about 86.2 million cattle and calves, according to USDA data. The cattle shortage has driven consumer beef prices to record highs, with ground beef selling for $6.89 a pound on average in July, up 10% from a year ago, according to the Labor Department.

The Trump administration has taken several other steps to lower beef prices.

The Justice Department launched an antitrust probe of the nation's largest meatpackers after Trump called for one, and the administration unveiled plans to provide funding for smaller meatpacking operations to boost competition in the sector.

The Agriculture Department said last month that it would reopen ports along the southern border to Mexican cattle that had been shut out because of concerns about spreading a flesh-eating parasite called New World screwworm. Mexican cattle imports account for about 5% of the cattle processed in the U.S. and meatpacking executives had said it was the fastest way to potentially lower beef prices.

Beef-industry officials have said the only surefire way to lower beef prices is for ranchers to rebuild herds, a process that takes about two years. Ranchers sold off their herds after years of drought and poor financial conditions following the Covid-19 pandemic, and have so far shown few signs of expanding their operations to previous levels.

Before the July 4 holiday, an Agriculture Department official had called executives at some of America's top supermarkets to lower the prices of beef sold to consumers, the Journal previously reported.

Despite high prices, consumer demand for beef hasn't cooled. Americans are expected to consume about 29 billion pounds of beef this year, according to government data. Trump's planned expansion of imports would equal about 2% of all beef consumed in the U.S.

It couldn't be immediately determined which country the imported beef would come from or which grocery stores would sell the discounted beef. Live cattle futures-reflecting the price meatpackers pay for livestock that are processed in their plants-were down about 2% on Friday.

High cattle prices have been a financial boost to America's ranchers, who are seeing some of their highest profits ever. Ranchers have been slow to rebuild their herds as a result.

In July, a USDA cattle herd report indicated a 0.2% increase in the cattle herd from the prior year, but some industry officials say it shows the number is stabilizing rather than significantly growing.

Write to Philip Wegmann at philip.wegmann@wsj.com, Patrick Thomas at patrick.thomas@wsj.com and Gavin Bade at gavin.bade@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 21, 2026 11:51 ET (15:51 GMT)