President Donald Trump, the “magician,” said, “Hey, farmers and ranchers, look in this hand and not the other one.”
However, I hope that we all look in both hands because his “America First” plan is really just a disappearing act. For those that have missed it, on Oct. 16, he announced his “like magic” plan to reduce the cost of beef to consumers. Of course, three days later, he confirmed that he will be seeking beef imports from Argentina in the name of helping consumers.
Let’s not mention that the current cattle prices, when adjusted for inflation, are not much different than 1990. But in the other hand, the Trump Team announced “BOLD ACTION” by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to reduce the threat of China buying more farmland in the United States.
Let’s look at the rhetoric from the USDA in this announcement.
More broadly, this bold Action Plan articulates key activities that will:
• Promote Agricultural and Economic Prosperity through securing our nation’s farmland, identifying gaps in the supply chain and other security vulnerabilities.
• Defend the Foundations of Agriculture and Food by enhancing research security and evaluating all USDA programs to ensure they put America First.
• Strengthen Domestic Agricultural Productivity through safeguarding plant and animal health, protecting critical infrastructure, and promoting American agricultural products in the U.S. and abroad.
Back to the USDA Action Plan:
Action: USDA has launched a new online portal for farmers, ranchers, and others to report possible false or failed reporting and compliance with respect to the Agricultural Foreign Inveestment Disclosure Act. Further, the portal will receive and review claims of adversarial foreign influence on federal, state, and local policymakers with respect to purchases of U.S. farmland and business dealings in other facets of U.S. agricultural supply chains. Submissions may be accepted anonymously or contact information may be provided for appropriate follow-up by USDA.
First, I am aware that China purchased assets in close proximity to many U.S. military bases, in fact I have been to two of them. Clearly, that is a problem. Beyond that threat to our national security, quite frankly I am more concerned with what is happening to land control from DC than I am from the Chinese Communist Party.
We continue to fight easements to control land for transmission lines and pipelines at an unprecedented rate. Once you give control of that land to a third party, you have just lost it forever. Nowhere does the USDA talk about stopping China from being able to purchase easements. Of course, this also involves a little bit of a magic show. The Trump Team is still allowing, through Dec. 31, 2026, tax credits for wind and solar developments that take land out of food production. Ironically, the components to build those developments rely on China for manufacturing.
My phone rings non-stop with people asking for help to prevent this nonsense from happening in their county.
It is really hard to consider the Trump Team policies as America First when the land with abundant resources and infrastructure has, for two years in a row, nearly $50 billion in agriculture trade deficits. Those in the beef business can easily blame drought for the reduction of the U.S. cattle inventory that has led to increased beef prices in the store. I ask you to look at what has happened in the beef business in Argentina in the past four years.
Drought there has led to a reduction of cattle inventory causing an increase in Brazilian beef imports to Argentina during 2025. Don’t look now but Brazil has just surpassed Australia as the No. 1 importer of beef to the U.S. So my question is, are we going to be getting Brazilian beef in boxes labeled from Argentina? Neither of those options allows for the America First banner to wave any longer.
Consumers love good American beef and farm and ranch families deserve to get paid for the high-quality products they produce. Encourage your urban neighbors to buy direct from a producer or demand U.S. beef when they go to the store. If people can pay $1800 for a hand-held tracking device they can pay $25 for a good steak in the store so beef producers can build back their herds and keep their operation afloat
Let the market take care of itself and let Americans enjoy protein that comes from the generational caretakers of our earth, not that shipped in on a boat from far-flung operations around the world.
Editor’s note: The views expressed here are the author’s own and do not represent the views of High Plains Journal. Trent Loos is a sixth-generation United States farmer, host of the daily radio show “Loos Tales” and founder of Faces of Agriculture, a non-profit organization putting the human element back into the production of food. Get more information at www.LoosTales.com, or email Trent at [email protected].
PHOTO: Working Cowboy. (Adobe Stock │ #310079366 – Terri Cage)
