A Bloomberg opinion story over the weekend highlighted President Trump calling on the U.S. Justice Department to investigate the so-called Big Four meatpacking conglomerates “that have a hammerlock on beef processing, distribution and pricing in the U.S.” Trump’s allegations are serious: price fixing, collusion and market manipulation by what he calls “foreign-owned meatpacking cartels.” Together, the Big Four control 85% of the U.S. beef market, which the White House says amounts to monopoly power, allowing the companies to slash payments to farmers, reduce herd sizes, drive up consumer prices and jeopardize the nation’s food supply, said Bloomberg. “Action must be taken immediately to protect consumers, combat Illegal monopolies, and ensure these corporations are not criminally profiting at the expense of the American people,” Trump posted on his social network.
The Big Four themselves have chosen not to comment on the investigation or the president’s allegations. But the Meat Institute, a trade group representing meat and poultry processors, said beef packers have been losing money because of tight cattle supplies and strong demand. Recent Trump administration actions have concerned many U.S. farmers—namely a trade showdown with China that prompted China to stop buying U.S. soybeans, and Trump threatening to import more beef from Argentina. President Trump may have won back a measure of farmer support by attacking four of the best-known names in agribusiness: Minnesota’s Cargill, one of the largest privately held companies in the country; Tyson Foods, a major meat and poultry producer out of Arkansas; and JBS in Colorado and National Beef Packing Company in Missouri. The latter two are owned by companies in Brazil but have their U.S. headquarters in those states. The U.S. beef market was valued at more than $108 billion in 2024, said the Bloomberg opinion piece.
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