As Americans continue to feel the squeeze from President Donald Trump’s sweeping global tariffs – layered on top of lingering inflation – the Trump administration announced $12 billion in aid for farmers hit hardest by the ongoing trade war. Trump met with members of the farming community as he made the announcement.
Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins said the payments would begin by Feb. 28. She also clarified that initially, $11 billion would go to farmers with row crops, while the remaining $1 billion would go to to-be-determined specialty crops.
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The announcement comes as the president has assembled a group of his top advisers to tackle record-high beef prices. According to The Wall Street Journal, Trump has asked his economic and trade team to find ways to bring costs down.
Beef prices have surged for years
Steak and ground beef prices hit record highs this year, but they’ve been steadily on the rise since 2021. The Trump administration has largely blamed the increase on the Biden administration.
“Here’s why your beef should be with Joe Biden, not Donald Trump. During Trump’s first term, hamburger prices rose about 3% a year, but under Biden, it was twice that,” White House trade adviser Peter Navarro said in a video posted to social media last week. “Why? Biden’s green war on oil drove up diesel, fertilizer and feed costs. And Biden’s range war against America’s ranchers cut off grazing on federal land, fording ranchers to slaughter heifers. So, Biden left us with the smallest cattle herd in more than 70 years and soaring prices.”
It is true that America’s cattle numbers are the lowest they’ve been since the 1950s. Ranchers thinned their cattle herds following pandemic-era losses and continued high costs. Beef remains one of the country’s most in-demand proteins.
New investigations into the supply chain
According to The Wall Street Journal, Trump on Saturday ordered the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Federal Trade Commission to create task forces to examine whether anticompetitive behavior is driving up U.S. food costs. The DOJ also launched an antitrust investigation into major meatpacking companies.
Experts told The Journal that “increasing lean ground-beef imports and the resumption of Mexican cattle crossing the border will help ease the supply burden.”
Prices continue to outpace inflation
Consumer Price Index data from October shows beef prices are up 14.7% year over year, far outpacing the 3.1% rise in overall food costs.
Ranchers are also feeling the strain. The American Farm Bureau Federation says input costs – everything from feed to fuel – have jumped more than 50% over the last five years, according to a report cited by CNBC.
