Area Cattle Producers Worry About Trump’s Influx of Cheap Foreign Beef

Much to the consternation of West Alabama cattle producers, President Trump’s foreign beef import plan went into effect today.

According to a proclamation announced by Trump on August 21st and signed last Wednesday, 300,000 metric tons of ground‑beef product will be allowed to enter the U.S. tariff‑free over 90 days.

Despite complaints from Republican state and congressional lawmakers, Trump's import plan is intended to force down beef prices in the U.S. But the lawmakers and cattle producers point out that high prices are the result of increased production costs, not rancher greed, as Trump has suggested.

Feed is the single largest cost in cattle production, and it remains elevated according to the Alabama Cattlemen's Association. They point out that corn futures are hovering around $4.56 per bushel.

They also blame rising fuel costs to operate equipment and transport cattle, the high cost of fertilizer, processing costs, drought impacts, and trade tariffs for driving some producers out of the market.

Get our free mobile app

Now, Trump is adding lower-priced foreign beef to the mix.

“We have a commitment that this beef will be sold at 25 percent below current market prices,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Alabama cattlemen overwhelmingly oppose Trump’s plan to import tariff‑free foreign beef, calling it harmful, poorly timed, and a direct threat to ranchers’ livelihoods. Their reactions are strong, detailed, and remarkably consistent among Republicans who have supported Trump in the past.

Alabama GOP U.S. Senator Katie Britt has been urging Trump to reconsider his plan, saying it risks harming Alabama producers while they are already under strain.

In a news release this afternoon, South Alabama Democrat Congressman Shomari Figures said he sent a letter to U.S. House Agriculture Committee Chairman Glenn “GT” Thompson, a Pennsylvania Republican, asking Thompson to hold a hearing on Trump’s proclamation.

“The Committee has a responsibility to understand the implications of the President’s latest policy for American agriculture,” Figures wrote. “President Trump’s proclamation is a slap in the face to the hardworking cattle farmers we have across this nation and here in Alabama."

The most recent meat price reading from the USDA’s Economic Research Service found that Americans are now paying more than $13 per pound for beef steaks—up from $11.88 in July 2025—as the price of ground beef has nearly doubled in the last decade.

ACA CEO Erin Beasley says the live cattle market “took a sharp decline” right after Trump’s announcement, directly reducing ranchers’ earnings. She warns that August is one of Alabama’s heaviest marketing months, so any volatility hits producers at the worst possible time.

Beasley argues that tariff‑free imports, especially at 25% below current market prices, will undercut Alabama producers, discourage investment in operations, and slow herd expansion at a time when ranchers are already struggling with high input costs and drought recovery.

Alabama has almost 18,000 farms with more than 1.1 million head of cattle, which provide a major portion of the state's economy. In West Alabama, Sumter, Greene, Hale, Marengo, Pickens, and Lamar have long been among Alabama’s strongest beef‑cattle regions.

Critics of the plan believe the imports will force cattle producers to further reduce the size of their herds, putting further pressure on profitability and ensuring higher domestic beef costs.