By Jody Godoy and Tom Polansek
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. is investigating meat packing companies, the attorney general said Friday, after President Donald Trump said industry practices are driving up the price of beef.
Beef prices set records in 2025 after a years-long drought burned up pasture lands and hiked feeding costs for cattle. As a result, ranchers slashed the nation’s cattle herd to the smallest level in nearly 75 years, reducing production of steaks and hamburger meat. Consumer demand has remained generally strong despite high prices.
“I 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,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Friday, without naming companies.
Ranchers have long complained about consolidation in the packing industry, where Tyson, Cargill, JBS and National Beef Packing Company together control around 80% of the market.
Spokespeople for the four companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Tyson, Cargill and JBS have paid tens of millions of dollars to settle lawsuits accusing the companies of conspiring to inflate U.S. beef prices by restricting supply. The companies have denied wrongdoing.
The DOJ has already begun an investigation, Attorney General Pam Bondi said in a post on X on Friday. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and Assistant Attorney General Gail Slater, who leads the DOJ’s antitrust division, are working together on the probe, Bondi said.
“We need transparency, accountability, and a fair market that rewards those who actually raise and produce our beef — not the corporate middlemen gaming the system,” Rollins said in a post on X.
(Reporting by Kanishka Singh in Washington, Bhargav Acharya in Toronto, Tom Polansek in Chicago and Jody Godoy in New York; editing by Chris Sanders and Costas Pitas)
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