Yup.
Anyone claiming that the American Farmer is grateful for this move by Trump is spreading misinformation.
The National Cattleman's Beef Association
(NCBA) has represented America's cattle producers since 1898 and is the largest association of cattle producers in the U.S.
"NCBA's family farmers and ranchers have numerous concerns with importing more Argentinian beef to lower prices for consumers. This plan only creates chaos at a critical time of the year for American cattle producers, while doing nothing to lower grocery store prices," said NCBA CEO Colin Woodall in a
statement released Monday.
"Additionally, Argentina has a deeply unbalanced trade relationship with the U.S. In the past five years, Argentina has sold more than $801 million of beef into the U.S. market. By comparison, the U.S. has sold just over $7 million worth of American beef to Argentina. Argentina also has a history of foot-and-mouth disease, which if brought to the U.S., could decimate our domestic livestock production."
Beef From Argentina? 'A Betrayal of the American Rancher,' Farmers Tell Trump USCA was among the first to respond to Trump's remarks.
President Justin Tupper
issued a second statement Monday and said, "USCA commented on Friday regarding potential steps by the administration to address beef prices, and we will reiterate our position today: government intervention is not needed in an industry that is already correcting in response to years of market pressure.
"Today's comments alone triggered an immediate reaction in the markets cattle futures dropped significantly. It's important to underscore: the current price of beef on grocery store shelves reflects the true, inflation-adjusted cost of raising cattle in America today.
"Already this year, the U.S. has imported more than 1.26 million metric tons of beef, primarily from Australia, Canada, Brazil, Mexico, and New Zealand. Increasing imports under current rules ultimately benefits foreign suppliers and multinational packers, while putting U.S. ranchers on the losing end and depriving American consumers of honest transparency at the meat counter.
"USCA supports affordable food prices for American families. But we do oppose policies or loopholes that manipulate the market to address a solution that will be solved through natural market behavior. This approach weakens our industry's foundation and undermines rural America.
