{"id":734854,"date":"2025-11-07T16:56:35","date_gmt":"2025-11-08T00:56:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.oann.com\/?p=734854"},"modified":"2025-11-07T17:13:15","modified_gmt":"2025-11-08T01:13:15","slug":"trump-announces-doj-investigation-into-meat-packing-companies-accusing-them-of-artificially-inflating-beef-prices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.oann.com\/newsroom\/trump-announces-doj-investigation-into-meat-packing-companies-accusing-them-of-artificially-inflating-beef-prices\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump announces DOJ investigation into meat-packing companies, accusing them of artificially inflating beef prices"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"MIAMI,
MIAMI, FLORIDA – JULY 22: Marlo Ramirez carries slabs of beef to be prepared for a customer in a grocery store on July 22, 2025 in Miami, Florida. (Joe Raedle\/Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

OAN Staff Blake Wolf<\/a> and Brooke Mallory<\/a>
4:51 PM \u2013 Friday, November 7, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Donald Trump ordered the Department of Justice (DOJ) to launch an investigation into the United States’ top meat-packing companies, accusing them of engaging in \u201ccollusion, price fixing, and price manipulation\u201d to artificially inflate the price of beef.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Friday, President Trump issued the announcement — just days after Republicans pledged to keep tackling everyday costs through legislation and legal channels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Additionally, though in Democratic stronghold states, Democrats were also recently handed off-year victories<\/a> after prioritizing campaigns centered on the high cost of living.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, the U.S. Commander-in-Chief accuses the meat-packing companies, many of which are majority foreign-owned, of artificially inflating beef prices. He noted that cattle prices have dropped while boxed beef prices have risen, calling it “fishy.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cI have asked the DOJ to immediately begin an investigation into the Meat Packing Companies who are driving up the price of Beef through Illicit Collusion, Price Fixing, and Price Manipulation,\u201d Trump wrote. \u201cWe will always protect our American Ranchers, and they are being blamed for what is being done by Majority Foreign Owned Meat Packers, who artificially inflate prices, and jeopardize the security of our Nation\u2019s food supply.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAction 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. I am asking the DOJ to act expeditiously,\u201d Trump added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhile Cattle Prices have dropped substantially, the price of Boxed Beef has gone up \u2014 Therefore, you know that something is \u2018fishy.\u2019 We will get to the bottom of it very quickly. If there is criminality, those people responsible will pay a steep price!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Retail beef prices have reached record highs throughout 2025, driven by tight supplies and steady consumer demand. A multi-year drought, starting in 2020 and intensifying through 2024 in key ranching regions like Texas, Oklahoma, and the Midwest, has been the primary culprit. Ranchers have also complained about the overall consolidation of the meatpacking industry, in which Tyson Foods, Cargill, JBS USA, and National Beef Packing Company make up around 80% of the industry.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cThis entire industry is highly concentrated and well beyond the level that\u2019s normally considered a harm to the economy,\u201d stated R-CALF USA\u2019s CEO Bill Bullard.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

Tyson, Cargill, and JBS agreed to pay $87.5 million in October to settle lawsuits in which they were accused of conspiring to inflate beef prices in the United States by decreasing supply.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cTHANK YOU @POTUS for standing up for America\u2019s farmers, ranchers, and consumers!\u201d wrote Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins in an X post on Friday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor far too long, hardworking ranching families have been squeezed by massive foreign-owned meatpacking corporations manipulating prices and driving family operations out of business. These global monopolies profit while everyday Americans pay more at the grocery store and rural communities struggle to survive,\u201d she continued.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s time to put America First again in our food system. We need transparency, accountability, and a fair market that rewards those who actually raise and produce our beef \u2014 not the corporation middlemen gaming the system. Thank you, President Trump, for fighting for the heartland, for our farmers and ranchers, and for standing up to the corrupt forces that threaten our food security and American independence,\u201d Rollins added.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

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THANK YOU, @POTUS<\/a> for standing up for America\u2019s farmers, ranchers, and consumers! \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8

For far too long, hardworking ranching families have been squeezed by massive foreign-owned meatpacking corporations manipulating prices and driving family operations out of business. These\u2026 https:\/\/t.co\/qiftHNtA1q<\/a><\/p>— Secretary Brooke Rollins (@SecRollins) November 7, 2025<\/a><\/blockquote>