President Donald Trump announced Friday that he is taking steps to allow American farmers and ranchers to process their own food, targeting what he described as a powerful and noncompetitive meat-processing industry.
The announcement came one week after Trump said he would lift tariffs on beef imports as part of an effort to bring down prices. That proposal drew major criticism from opponents who argued that easing the tariffs would further hurt American ranchers.
Trump responded to the concerns in a Truth Social post Friday, declaring that ranchers and farmers have always been among his top priorities.
“They work very hard, are smart, efficient, and immaculately CLEAN,” Trump wrote.
The president said he had heard for years that farmers and ranchers were facing significant difficulties because of the country’s largest processing companies. He argued that the industry is dominated by four major processors, creating what many have described as a monopoly.
“There are, essentially, 4 of them, a very non competitive number, and they make life miserable for our wonderful Farmers and Ranchers,” Trump wrote.
The president also claimed that much of the ownership behind the processing companies is based outside the United States.
Trump said he was authorizing the preparation of legal documents that would give farmers and ranchers the right to process their own food. He indicated that the effort should advance rapidly but did not offer additional details about how the policy would work.
“This should move quickly,” Trump wrote.
The announcement followed a Wednesday interview with podcaster Glenn Beck on “The Glenn Beck Show,” during which Beck urged Trump to examine the meat-processing industry.
Beck suggested the president “look at the cartel that is the meat processing cartel.” He also raised the possibility that reducing Department of Agriculture regulations governing beef processing could provide relief to ranchers.
According to Reuters, most meat processing in the United States is controlled by companies including Cargill, Tyson Foods, JBS USA and National Beef Packing Co.
The Department of Justice confirmed last year that it was investigating the major meat companies over possible antitrust violations and allegations of inflated beef prices.
Trump’s latest move marks an effort to confront concerns surrounding the nation’s beef-processing system just days after his tariff proposal triggered pushback.
While the president had argued that lifting tariffs on imported beef could lower prices, critics warned that the plan would harm domestic producers. Trump later shrugged off the backlash, saying the tariff relief was “what people want.”
His Friday announcement instead focused on expanding the ability of farmers and ranchers to process their products independently, which Trump presented as a way to challenge the influence of the four dominant processors.
