President Donald Trump’s announcement that he plans to allow imports of up to 300,000 metric tons of ground beef products over the next three months without the standard out-of-quota tariff has been met with dismay by Oregon ranchers.

His announcement follows a 9.4% increase in beef prices and a 5% decline in national beef production last month, as rising food costs are changing what Americans put on their plates.

Imported Beef Will Be Sold at 25% Less Than U.S. Prices and is a Knee-Jerk Government Intervention

Oregon ranchers are also concerned by Trump’s announcement that imported beef will be sold at 25% below current market prices.

This statement is a ‘knee-jerk’ intervention and a short-term fix that will incur deferred costs, says Oregon Farm Bureau President Angela Bailey.

She said rather than flooding the market with discounted foreign beef, the government should adopt policies to develop a long-term solution for a healthy domestic cattle industry. Bailey believes ranchers deserve policies to strengthen their industry, and not policies to undercut them.

Expressing deep disappointment at the announcement, Bailey said Oregon ranchers are dealing with high feed, fuel, labor, and replacement costs. She also cited drought, wildfire and regulatory pressures, adding that many producers are selling their cattle to recover from years of thin or nonexistent margins.

Oregon’s cattle and calf industry generates more than $1 billion in production value.

Beef Prices Will Rise 9.8% This Year

According to an updated report by the USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS), wholesale beef prices were at record levels in July 2026.

The ERS forecasts that beef and veal prices will increase 9.8 percent in 2026, and that tight cattle supplies will reduce year-over-year beef production during the second half of 2026.

Meanwhile, pork prices are expected to increase by 0.8%, and poultry by 0.5% in 2026.