What Trump’s tariff-free beef means for grocery store prices and Upstate meat production
PICKENS COUNTY, S.C. —
President Trump aims to bring in hundreds of thousands of tons of imported beef in hopes of reducing record-setting costs for one of the nation’s most versatile meat products: ground beef.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported a 57% increase in the average price of ground beef between July of 2021 and July of 2026. A peak high of $6.90 per pound was recorded in May.
As the nation’s cattle herd hits a 75-year low, prices are only expected to continue soaring. According to the American Farm Bureau, herd expansion could take several years, anticipated to begin in 2028.
“We have a tightening supply of cattle available for the market. We have this strong demand, and that’s where we’re seeing these prices out right now,” said Dr. Matt Fischer, an economist through Clemson Extension’s Livestock and Forages program.
Trump’s announcement on Friday would flood 300,000 metric tons of beef into the market over the next 90 days. He hopes to reduce the current market price by 25%.
Five days later, agribusinesses are waiting for further guidance from the administration and the United States Department of Agriculture.
“This is the unknown. I was talking to a colleague of mine before I came out here as a kid. You seen anything at the USDA or anything on the White House? And he goes … no,” Fischer said.
Relief at the register could be great for store shoppers, but farmers or producers close to home worry about tanked profits while already facing high operational costs to maintain a herd.
Atticus Mabry, who owns a family cattle farm in Pickens, said diesel fuel was .99 cents a gallon when they first set up shop. According to AAA, the cost is up to $5.40 on average.
“You’re solving something temporarily. You might see some prices go down, and I think some of that will just be market reaction. It won’t actually be solving the problem. Truly solving this problem is going to take five to 10 years,” Mabry said.
Yon Family Farm, in Ridge Spring, South Carolina, wrote a letter to the president.
YON FAMILY FARMS
Yon Family Farms writes to President Donald Trump about imported beef.
Fischer said some, not all, of the ground beef we scan at the grocery store does not come as it’s shown.
“We have lean trimmings come in, and it’s combined with the fat that we have leftover from our cattle that we grow here in the U.S. And then that turns into what we have as our ground product,” Fischer said.
The USDA has not disclosed where the imports would be coming from and in what form: cattle or a packed product.
Mabry owns Oasis Animal Hospital in Greenville County. He said the involvement of animal medicine in quality control is an opportunity most standards do not take into consideration.
“The veterinarian is involved in food consumption and quality control. Most countries don’t have that,” Mabry said.
All imported beef is inspected by the USDA before entering the market to meet domestic food safety standards.
We asked Fischer why ground beef is the target over other cuts of meat. Fischer said ground beef is among the most versatile products on the market, ranking on the same level as products like chicken breast, which are less expensive and easier to use.
Keep up with what’s happening around our area by downloading the WYFF News 4 app on the App Store or Google Play.
Dining and Cooking