US President Donald Trump has announced a new plan aimed at reducing the cost of ground beef for American consumers by allowing additional imports without the usual out-of-quota tariff.
Trump said on Friday that the arrangement would allow up to 300,000 metric tons of beef products to enter the United States over the next 90 days without the additional tariff. He said exporters had committed to selling the beef at prices 25% below current market levels.
“Today, I concluded a deal to substantially lower the price of ground beef for working American families,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
The White House has not identified the countries or companies involved in the arrangement. A White House official said the administration had reached an agreement with foreign beef exporters to provide lean beef trimmings at a 25% discount, with the savings expected to reach consumers.
In return, the administration would remove the out-of-quota tariff on the imported lean beef trimmings, which are commonly used in ground beef production. Trump is expected to sign an executive order implementing the arrangement within the next few weeks.
The announcement comes as beef prices remain near record levels in the United States. Federal Reserve data showed the average retail price of ground beef reached about $6.89 per pound last month, roughly 57% higher than five years earlier.
Government data also showed uncooked ground beef prices rose 9% in July from the same month a year earlier.
A major factor behind higher prices is the limited size of the US cattle herd. The American Farm Bureau Federation reported that the nation’s beef cow herd fell to 28.5 million animals in July, about 1% below the previous year and the lowest July level since records began in 1973.
Drought, high production costs and strong consumer demand have placed pressure on cattle producers and reduced supplies.
Trump’s latest move follows an executive order earlier this year that sought to increase imports of lean beef trimmings from Argentina by 80,000 metric tons annually. That plan faced criticism from industry groups and some analysts, who questioned whether additional imports would be large enough to significantly reduce prices.
The National Cattlemen’s Beef Association also criticized Friday’s announcement. Its chief executive, Colin Woodall, said cattle producers wanted affordable food for consumers but argued that bringing in subsidized, below-market beef could undermine efforts to rebuild the US cattle herd.
The dispute highlights a challenge for the administration: lowering prices for consumers in the short term while protecting domestic ranchers and encouraging growth in US cattle production over the longer term.
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