President Donald Trump is facing backlash from American ranching groups after he said Sunday that the U.S. may “buy some beef from Argentina” in order to “bring our beef prices down.”
Agricultural Secretary Brooke Rollins confirmed Tuesday that Trump is “in discussions with Argentina”—with more details to come—though she claimed that not “very much” beef would be imported, in part due to a “foot-and-mouth disease issue” facing Argentina.
Or perhaps she made the addendum because of the outrage the Trump administration has been facing.
Trump’s proposal to take in Argentine beef has stoked fears about depressed domestic beef prices among cattle ranchers and industry groups. And it’s salt in a fresh wound, as farmers are already displeased with the administration’s multibillion-dollar lifeline to Argentina under Trump ally President Javier Milei—a move which benefitted a major agricultural competitor as American farmers suffer under Trump’s trade policies.
Farm Action, an agricultural watchdog group, called the plan “a betrayal of the American rancher,” lamenting that, “After crashing the soybean market and gifting Argentina our largest export buyer, [Trump is] now poised to do the same to the cattle market.”
The National Farmers Union similarly observed that Trump “recently bailed out Argentina with $40 billion in U.S. taxpayer-backed aid, and Argentina’s response was to strike new deals selling soybeans to China—deals that hurt American crop farmers. The last thing we need is to reward them by importing more of their beef.”
“Increasing imports under current rules ultimately benefits foreign suppliers and multinational packers, while putting U.S. ranchers on the losing end and depriving American consumers of honest transparency at the meat counter,” said the U.S. Cattlemen’s Association in a statement, which went on to warn that Trump’s approach “weakens our industry’s foundation and undermines rural America.”
The American Farm Bureau Federation urged Trump “to carefully consider the damage importing more beef and cattle from other countries will have as cattle farmers decide whether to invest in rebuilding America’s herds.”
“This plan only creates chaos at a critical time of the year for American cattle producers, while doing nothing to lower grocery store prices,” said the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, which called on Trump “to let the market work, rather than intervening in ways that do nothing but harm rural America.”
When asked by a reporter on Sunday to address U.S. farmers who feel they are being stiffed, Trump grew testy and condescending. “Argentina is fighting for its life, young lady,” he told the journalist. “You don’t know anything about it.” Having aggrieved major ag groups, the president will need a more convincing answer.
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