Amid noisy week in beef policy, USDA drops plan to fortify American ranching

It's the first government plan in decades aimed at revitalizing cattle ranching.

Yesterday, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins released a policy white paper on U.S. cattle ranching that centers ranchers and the nation’s beef supply chain as vital to national security.

“We are committed to ensuring the American people have an affordable source of protein and that America’s ranchers have a strong economic environment where they can continue to operate for generations to come,” Rollins said.

While high-level, the plan aims to support ranchers and lower beef prices for consumers through a range of initiatives including deregulation, predator compensation, disaster support, and expanded meat processing capacity particularly for small, local processors.

“When we first purchased our processing plant, I just missed a grant that expired in 2024,” says Daniel Sinton, owner of Sinton & Sons butcher shop in Central California. “Any new equipment came out of pocket. Which is how businesses should work but this grant is intended to expand our capabilities to support more local food economies and could be an incredible help to us in re-establishing local processing. When I saw this grant was included in the new beef plan I nearly fell out of my chair. There’s also a grant to provide local beef to schools that I sent to a producer who brings us the animals for this exact program. This will help her reach a lot more schools.”

The plan does not include direct subsidies for ranchers, though the National Institute of Food and Agriculture is called to encourage ranching-specific applications for certain federal grants. The focus is on creating an “enabling” environment by increasing grazing land access, opening up opportunities and tech tools, and reducing regulatory burdens.

“It’s the first comprehensive government plan issued in decades for the express purpose of revitalizing the domestic cattle industry, which has been shrinking at an alarming rate since the 80s,” said Bill Bullard, CEO of R-CALF USA.

Several interagency partnerships are included. There’s an agreement with the DOI to increase federal land grazing and to “elevate grazing as an Administration priority.” 10% of these grazing allotments are vacant—about 24 million acres. Action items include regional meetings to connect producers and field staff, targeted grazing for fire and invasive species control, improved agency coordination, a one-stop portal for grazing permit holders, and a streamlined permit process.

Consumers and cow-calf producers have long pushed for more transparency in labeling. While this plan doesn’t go as far as the mandatory country of origin labeling (MCOOL) legislation producers have lobbied for, Rollins commits to enforcing a Biden-era rule—set to go into effect January 1—that will put an end to the common meatpacker practice of using “Product of the USA” labels on foreign-grown beef processed in the U.S.

The plan includes promises to drive up demand for beef by encouraging “protein as the foundation for every meal” in the new 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), set for release before the end of the year. These guidelines direct policy and purchasing for programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), school breakfast and lunch programs, and meals fed to U.S. servicemembers.

“We are restoring whole foods as the foundation of the American diet and ending the decades-old stigma against natural saturated fat in beef and dairy products,” said Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., secretary of Health & Human Services (HHS). “We will strengthen America’s ranching industry so families can choose nutrient-dense, minimally processed foods.”

Plan drops during controversy over Trump comments on beef industry

This rollout comes on the heels of a noisy week in beef policy in which President Trump caught heat for plans to import Argentine beef, followed by controversial Truth Social posts urging ranchers to lower their prices.

“The Cattle Ranchers, who I love, don’t understand that the only reason they are doing so well, for the first time in decades, is because I put Tariffs on cattle coming into the United States, including a 50% Tariff on Brazil,” Trump wrote. “If it weren’t for me, they would be doing just as they’ve done for the past 20 years — Terrible!”

The president then urged ranchers to “get their prices down.”

On CNBC’s Squawk Box, Rollins attempted to clarify the comments.

“Right now in America we consume about 12 million metric tons of beef, 10 million of that we produce here in America, but the two million I’m talking about we’ve been offshoring,” she said. “So yes, the president has said he’s in discussions with Argentina, I think we’ll be hearing more about that in the next day or two.”

She emphasized that the planned imports are minimal.

“As part of that 12 million metric tons, it will not be very much. Argentina is also facing a foot and mouth disease issue.”

Industry response shadowed by import rumors

While lawmakers and industry advocacy groups are reacting positively to the USDA plan, praise is dampened by import concerns.

The U.S. Cattlemen’s Association (USCA) said that while the agenda is a positive step for the livestock sector, the pending decision to import 80,000 metric tons of beef from Argentina had an immediate negative impact on cattle markets.

“We oppose this kind of government intervention in the marketplace and will continue to defend ranchers from this action,” said Justin Tupper, USCA president. “A deal of this magnitude with Argentina would undercut the very foundation of our cattle industry.”

Bullard said that while R-CALF will continue to push for beef checkoff reform, MCOOL, and ending electronic ear tag identification mandates, the plan shows the USDA “understands the serious concerns we’ve been expressing for years regarding the lack of antitrust and fair competition law enforcement.”

As of Thursday evening, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (NCBA) has not released any public comment on the USDA beef plan. Their latest press release condemns Argentine imports.