It began with a meltdown about Thanksgiving dinner prices. Now it’s escalated into a full-blown presidential crusade—against beef.
On Friday morning, President Donald Trump, cornered by questions about America’s affordability crisis, took to Truth Social with a new theory: foreign-owned meatpacking giants are secretly sabotaging U.S. consumers.
“While Cattle Prices have dropped substantially, the price of Boxed Beef has gone up—Therefore, you know that something is ‘fishy,’” Trump wrote, capitalizing random words with his trademark flair. “We will get to the bottom of it very quickly. If there is criminality, those people responsible will pay a steep price!”
By afternoon, the Department of Justice had been “instructed” to launch an investigation into alleged “price fixing and manipulation” by the nation’s top meatpackers.
The “Beef Cartel” Theory
Trump’s new scapegoat for the cost-of-living crisis is what he calls the “Majority Foreign Owned Meat Packers.” He accused them of “artificially inflating prices and jeopardizing the security of our Nation’s food supply.”
The four companies dominating the U.S. beef industry—Tyson Foods, Cargill, National Beef Packing Company, and the Brazilian-based JBS—control nearly 85% of the market. Trump zeroed in on JBS, calling it “foreign interference in America’s dinner tables.”
But the irony was immediate and brutal. Republican Congressman Thomas Massie reminded Trump that JBS’s subsidiary, Pilgrim’s Pride, donated $5 million to the Trump–Vance Inaugural Committee earlier this year—the single largest corporate donation to his second inauguration.
That donation sparked questions from Senator Elizabeth Warren, who demanded to know whether it influenced the SEC’s approval of JBS’s long-delayed listing on the New York Stock Exchange.
“Maybe start your investigation there,” Massie quipped online.
Farmers Furious, Economists Skeptical
Ranchers across America were far less amused. Walter Schweitzer, president of the Montana Farmers Union, said Trump’s sudden outrage feels performative.
“He’s yelling about a Brazilian meat cartel,” Schweitzer told reporters, “but those same companies have been cozying up to him for years.”
The anger is rooted in hard economics. The price of ground beef has jumped 51% since 2020, driven by droughts, shrinking cattle herds, and global supply chain issues—not, as experts insist, a sinister plot by packers.
Agricultural economist Derrell Peel of Oklahoma State University called Trump’s move “a recycled distraction.”
“The packing industry has been investigated for fifty years,” Peel said. “If you break them up, prices for consumers will go up, not down.”
Still, Trump loyalists moved quickly to back his investigation. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced on X that Assistant AG Abigail Slater and Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins would “take the lead on the beef case.”
A Crisis of Trump’s Own Making
The beef saga comes as Trump faces growing political backlash over rising costs and his inability to deliver on campaign promises. He had vowed to lower grocery prices “starting on day one.” Ten months later, the numbers tell a different story.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, grocery prices rose 2.7% between September 2024 and September 2025, and another 1.4% since January, when Trump returned to office.
Gas, rent, and energy costs have also continued climbing. Yet the president insists Americans “feel richer than ever”—a claim echoed only by his most ardent surrogates.
Democratic Representative Ro Khanna summed up the frustration on CNN: “Rents are up, groceries are up, and families are struggling. Instead of chasing conspiracies about cows, he should focus on jobs and wages.”
Political Fallout
The timing of Trump’s “meat crackdown” couldn’t be worse. His approval ratings have slipped to their lowest level since taking office, following Democratic victories in Virginia, Georgia, and New York, where cost-of-living issues dominated campaigns.
Meanwhile, his feud with global corporations risks alienating traditional GOP donors. Executives at Tyson and Cargill privately described the president’s announcement as “reckless populism,” according to Reuters.
One industry source joked, “He’s not draining the swamp—he’s milking the cow.”
The Spin Machine
Despite the blowback, Trump’s media allies are framing the beef probe as proof of his populist instincts. Fox News host Laura Ingraham hailed it as “a patriotic stand against global food monopolies.” Others aren’t so sure.
“Every time prices rise, he blames a new villain,” said political analyst Alicia Menendez. “Last week it was Democrats. Now it’s beef. Next week, who knows—maybe bread.”
At Friday’s press briefing, White House deputy spokesperson Karoline Leavitt defended the president’s focus on meatpacking. “The American people have a right to know why they’re paying more for dinner,” she said. “The president is fighting for transparency and fairness.”
But critics say it’s a familiar Trump playbook—deflect, dramatize, and dominate the narrative.
“He’s not solving the problem,” said one former aide. “He’s feeding the outrage machine.”
A Political Steak-Out
By evening, the president returned to Truth Social, posting in all caps:
“AMERICAN RANCHERS ARE HEROES. FOREIGN MEAT PACKERS ARE THIEVES. WE WILL RESTORE FAIRNESS TO OUR FOOD SUPPLY!!”
Whether his investigation will actually change anything—or just cook up more chaos—remains to be seen.
For now, America’s affordability crisis remains unsolved. But in Trump’s Washington, there’s always someone new to grill.
