The US Department of Justice (DoJ) has begun an investigation into alleged price fixing by meatpacking companies at the behest of President Donald Trump.
Attorney General Pam Bondi revealed the start of the probe on the X social media platform on Friday (7 November). It is being led by Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater, who heads the department’s antitrust division.
Bondi’s announcement followed Trump’s call for an inquiry into what he described as artificially inflated beef prices.
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The DoJ has not disclosed which companies might come under scrutiny.
However, in a White House notice posted on Friday four companies were identified in a footnote – JBS, Cargill, Tyson Foods and National Beef. They control about 85% of US beef processing, compared to 36% in 1980, according to the notice.
“Two of these companies, including the largest meat packer in the world, are either foreign-owned or have significant foreign ownership and control,” the White House said in its statement.
Brazil-headquartered meat giant JBS is controlled by the Batista family through their holding company J&F Investimentos. National Beef is owned by another Brazilian meat business Marfrig Global Foods, which recently merged with peer BRF.
“This decisive action targets the foreign-dominated conglomerates that control America’s meat supply and have been accused of artificially inflating prices at the expense of farmers, ranchers, and working families,” the White House notice read.
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By GlobalDataIn a Truth Social post, also on Friday, Trump alleged that meatpacking companies are “driving up the price of beef through illicit collusion, price fixing, and price manipulation”.
He added: “We will always protect our American ranchers and they are being blamed for what is being done by majority-foreign-owned meatpackers, who artificially inflate prices, and jeopardise the security of our nation’s food supply.”
The Meat Institute, which represents US meatpackers, said the beef sector is subject to extensive regulation and that market dealings are transparent.
Meat Institute president and CEO Julie Anna Potts added: “Despite high consumer prices for beef, beef packers have been losing money because the price of cattle is at record highs.
“For more than a year, beef packers have been operating at a loss due to a tight cattle supply and strong demand.”
Ranchers Cattlemen Action Legal Fund United Stockgrowers of America, which represents US cattle and sheep producers, welcomed the probe.
Its CEO Bill Bullard said: “There has long been a disconnect between cattle prices and beef prices, and we believe this is evidence of market failure.
“We welcome this investigation to ensure that cattle producers receive competitive prices for their cattle, and that consumers pay prices set by a competitive market rather than a monopolistic one.”
The administration of former President Joe Biden also targeted meatpacking companies in 2021/22 for contributing to higher food prices.
Cargill is a privately held agribusiness based in Minnetonka, Minnesota, while Tyson Foods is publicly listed and headquartered in Springdale, Arkansas.
“Industry consolidation has crushed competition and hammered cattle producers. This has led to the exploitation of American consumers, farmers, and ranchers,” the White House statement added.
Rollins posted on X that the initiative is aimed at “cracking down on the foreign-owned meat-packing cartels that have been ripping off American ranchers and driving up prices”, which she added, “is a huge win for our ranchers, our consumers, and anyone sick of foreign businesses fleecing Americans”.
