Cattle groups react to Trump’s beef import post
August 24, 2026 in News by RBN Staff
August 21, 2026
The Administration is temporarily increasing the quota for tariff-free imports of beef, according to a Truth Social post from President Donald Trump on Friday.
“Today, I concluded a deal to substantially lower the price of ground beef for working American families,” Trump posted. “As everyone knows, under President Biden, beef prices soared at their fastest rate and the American beef herd fell to its smallest size in modern history. As we work to rebuild this herd and help our ranchers, for the next 90 days, the United States will allow up to 300,000 metric tons of product for ground beef to be imported with no out of quota tariff. We have a commitment that this beef will be sold at 25 percent below current market prices. This deal will reduce prices for Americans while giving space for our Great American Beef Herd to grow again.”
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, representing America’s cattle producers, issued a statement in response to the post regarding beef imports.
“NCBA is disappointed by the President’s statement,” NCBA chief executive officer Colin Woodall stated. “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. Cattle markets have already turned sharply lower this morning, to the detriment of farmers and ranchers. This is a critical time of year for cattle producers, as we approach the season where they are making decisions regarding their herds. Cattle farmers and ranchers are responding to strong market signals and historically high demand, and we are already working to rebuild after years of ongoing drought, high input costs and other challenges that have reduced U.S. cattle numbers. Today’s announcement and other market interventions throw cold water on the prospect of herd expansion and sacrifices long-term stability for short term messaging.”
The U.S. Cattlemen’s Association also responded, warning the move would sideline U.S. producers, threaten cattle prices and risk undermining consumer confidence in the beef supply.
“For decades, USCA has advocated for the federal government not to intervene in cattle markets, yet policy decisions have steadily moved in the opposite direction. From recent tariff exemptions for Brazil after violating deforestation standards, tariff exemptions for Argentina after violating forced labor standards to the expected reopening of the border to Mexican cattle on Monday in the face of additional New World screwworm cases, each action on its own sends a troubling market signal,” the association said in a news release.
“U.S. ranchers are already facing historically high input costs, the same inflationary pressures affecting all of agriculture, as well as prolonged drought and extreme wildfires that have reduced access to grazing land in many states. These are the market signals that make rebuilding the U.S. cattle herd far more difficult than it appears on paper. Layering a sudden, government–driven surge of imports on top of these conditions – especially in the fall, when many ranchers market their cattle – further erodes the economic confidence needed to invest in herd expansion. Taken together, they amount to a constant chipping away at our industry’s foundation and moving us closer to a breaking point,” USCA added.
“You don’t put America first by putting U.S. cattle producers last. This move will weaken our markets and gamble with food safety in the process,” said USCA president Justin Tupper.
“USCA underscores that there is no clear evidence that increasing beef imports in this manner will lower retail prices for consumers, while there is proof from prior trade actions that dumping additional foreign beef into the U.S. market can depress cattle prices paid to American producers,” the news release said. “The recent recall of beef imported from Argentina, following a previous tariff-rate quota (TRQ) decision, was a warning sign that the supply chain and inspection system are already strained and that rapidly increasing import volumes while suspending tariffs and guaranteeing discounted pricing heightens food safety risk.
The post did not detail where this product will come from, which countries’ TRQs will receive relief or which products specifically will be exempt, the group pointed out.
USCA added that “300,000 metric tons represents roughly half of total U.S. beef export volume so far in 2026 – a significant volume shift to absorb in a short window. Major supply chain moves of this size, made on a compressed timeline, do not lend themselves to careful oversight. The 90-day window referenced would extend the effort to lower consumer prices through November’s uncertain midterm election.”
Tupper said: “U.S. ranchers have endured years of low cattle prices and trade uncertainty, and now they are being used as pawns in a 90–day political timeline. We rely on consumers’ trust in our product, and flooding the supply chain with foreign beef on a price–fixed basis risks eroding that trust and driving people away from beef. The recent recall of beef from Argentina showed clearly that our current system is already strained. Imposing a blanket halt on tariffs and guaranteeing cheaper pricing on imports only adds risk for consumers and undermines confidence in our food system. We want Americans to be able to buy beef, but prices cannot be pushed down at the expense of food safety. That’s a sure way to make certain nobody wins.”
