Trump inks trade deal, secures $800 million in Argentinian beef imports 

Cattle producers are not admiring the art of President Donald Trump’s latest trade deal, which has the potential to reduce the record high cattle prices the industry has been reaping. On Feb. 5, the United States and Argentina finalized a treaty called the “Agreement on Reciprocal Trade and Investment.” 

The deal lowers tariffs on Argentina; boosts trade and strengthens the alliance between Trump and Argentina President Javier Milei. Part of this arrangement for the promise of purchasing a significant supply of beef from the country, much to the ire of American cattle producers. 

On Feb. 6, Trump signed an executive order titled “Ensuring Affordable Beef for the American Consumer,” which stated the U.S. would import $800 million in Argentinian beef through 2026. Trump previously spoke about the idea of bringing in additional beef from Argentina in October 2025. He said he believed this would address supply shortages and lower beef costs for consumers.  

Part of Trump’s platform in seeking his second, non-consecutive presidential term, was to improve the economy and lower everyday living costs, such as food, gas and housing. High beef prices at the grocery store have been a subject of concern for consumers in the past few years. Ground beef reached $6.69 per pound in December—the highest it has been since the 1980s when the Department of Labor began tracking costs. 

The White House cited record low cattle herd, widespread drought in 2022, wildfires and New World screwworm concerns in Mexico that blocked imports of live feeder cattle, as the main reasons for the high beef prices. The U.S. cattle herd is currently at a record low of 86.2 million head as of January 2026 and the beef cow inventory has decreased by 8.6% since 2020, according to the White House. 

The executive order increases the in-quota quantity of lean beef trimmings that can be imported from Argentina by an additional 80,000 metric tons during the 2026 calendar year. This is in addition to the 20,000-metric-ton annual in-quota quantity limit already applicable to Argentina.  

According to the White House, 20,000 metric tons of beef will be imported each quarter starting in February. Lean beef trimmings will be the focus for importation, which will primarily be used for ground beef. According to the executive order, the additional imports will be enough to make nearly 700 million quarter-pound hamburger patties. 

Beef industry concerns 

The suggestion to import more foreign beef brought widespread criticism from the U.S. livestock industry last year, and the executive order has brought a new wave of frustration from organizations like the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and R-CALF USA. 

“Previous administrations had similarly invited increased beef imports from foreign countries with the same expectation that increased imported supplies would lower consumer beef prices,” said Bill Bullard, R-CALF USA CEO. “Such analyses by previous administrations accompanied proposals to allow additional beef imports from such countries as Argentina, Brazil, Namibia and Paraguay. In each of these analyses, the U.S. Department of Agriculture predicted that the negative impact to cattle farmers and ranchers would be offset by a larger benefit to consumers. 

“In practice, however, consumer beef prices were not reduced by increased supplies of imported beef. Instead, increased quantities of imports correlated with the shrinking of the U.S. cattle herd, the exodus of U.S. cattle farmers and ranchers, and higher consumer beef prices. The reason for this is that the U.S. cattle and beef market is so highly concentrated that it is susceptible to the exercise of abusive market power by dominant corporations that can reduce prices paid to cattle farmers and ranchers while raising prices to consumers. In such a concentrated market, dominant players can use additional import supplies to increase their margins rather than lower retail beef prices,” Bullard explained. 

“America’s reticence to manage imports has relegated the U.S. to being a net beef importer for the past several decades, and those excessive imports are a major factor in the ongoing contraction of the U.S. cattle herd, which is now the smallest in over seven decades, and in forcing the exodus of over half of America’s cattle farms and ranches. 

“Import volumes reached new record highs in each of the past three years, contributing to the ongoing liquidation of our U.S. cow herd, which is now in its seventh consecutive year of liquidation. Our industry is in a state of crisis and needs protection against price-depressing imports so it can rebuild to meet our national security objective of achieving self-sufficiency in beef production. 

“While the intent of this agreement is to lower retail ground beef prices, it’s unlikely to achieve the intended result. It’s more likely to cause a reduction in cattle prices for U.S. farmers and ranchers—particularly prices for their cull animals that produce the same lean beef product that will be imported. And because the marketplace remains so highly concentrated, with a manifest disconnect between cattle prices and retail beef prices, it is as likely as not to have no impact on consumer ground beef prices. 

“We’re thankful that this additional 80,000-metric-ton allocation is set to expire at the end of 2026. Nevertheless, inviting more and lower-cost imports into the U.S. market without at least informing consumers of the imported products’ foreign country of origin—so they can choose between imported and domestic beef at their grocery stores—will likely allow any benefits to flow to the global beef packers and retailers at the expense of U.S. cattle farmers and ranchers. 

“While we appreciate President Trump’s efforts to achieve greater consumer affordability, what America must do to restore lasting affordability is rigorously enforce antitrust and fair-competition laws, align trade policy with food security through tariffs and tariff-rate quotas, and implement country-of-origin labeling so consumers can choose between imported beef and American beef.” 

NCBA has expressed similar criticisms of President Trump’s decision, while also highlighting the possibility of introducing animal disease from foreign countries that do not follow the same level of biosecurity protocols as the U.S. has in place. 

“Given Argentina’s issues with foreign animal diseases, NCBA remains concerned that expanding imports from Argentina without increased inspection protocols and up-to-date audits could place American consumers and our cattle herd at unnecessary risk,” said Kent Bacus, executive director of international trade and market access at NCBA. 

Lacey Vilhauer can be reached at 620-227-1871 or [email protected].