The American cattle ranching industry is blasting President Donald Trump’s proposal to purchase beef from Argentina in an effort to lower supermarket beef prices.
“This plan only creates chaos at a critical time of the year for American cattle producers, while doing nothing to lower grocery store prices,” Colin Woodall, CEO of the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, said in a statement Monday.
Wyoming-based cattle operation Meriwether Farms addressed Trump directly in a social media post Monday.
“We love you and support you — but your suggestion to buy beef from Argentina to stabilize beef prices would be an absolute betrayal to the American cattle rancher,” the farm wrote on X.
By midday Tuesday, the post had already received 4 million views. A representative for Meriwether Farms did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Trump floated purchasing beef from the South American nation Sunday aboard Air Force One to push down U.S. beef prices by increasing the overall supply.
‘We would buy some beef from Argentina,’ he told reporters, ‘If we do that, that will bring our beef prices down.’
Beef prices have hit record highs this year, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, fueled in part by depleted herd counts and steady demand from U.S. consumers.