Southwest
The single crushing problem American cattle ranchers wish Trump would fix instead
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President Donald Trump’s beef import plan aims to cut prices, but cattle ranchers say it misses what’s crushing them most — the power of meat packers.
“Meat packers have created a system where they win no matter what — at the cost of everyone else,” said Will Harris, a fourth-generation cattleman and owner of White Oak Pastures in Bluffton, Georgia.
Harris, who plans to hand off the operation to his children, said his farm handles every step of production, from raising cattle to processing and selling beef, giving him a clear view of how prices are set.
AMERICA’S SMALLEST CATTLE HERD IN 70 YEARS MEANS REBUILDING WILL TAKE YEARS AND BEEF PRICES COULD STAY HIGH
Sixth-generation cattle rancher Mark Kirkpatrick feeds heifers on the Stoker-Kirkpatrick Ranch in Post, Texas. (Melina Mara/The Washington Post/Getty Images)
At the center of that pricing power sit the “Big Four” — Tyson, JBS, Cargill and National Beef — anchoring the U.S. beef supply chain from pasture to plate.
Together, the packing titans process about 85% of the grain-fattened cattle that become steaks, roasts and other supermarket cuts.
“The U.S. beef market is so highly concentrated that a small number of dominant packers control processing, distribution and pricing. This allows them to pay ranchers less for cattle while charging consumers more at the store. When cheap imported beef enters the system, it allows packers to increase their margins,” Harris told Fox News Digital.
It’s a concern echoed deep into cattle country.
Texas cattle rancher Cole Bolton said he sees the same problem in the Lone Star State.
IN TEXAS CATTLE COUNTRY, ONE RANCHER WELCOMES TRUMP’S FOCUS ON DECADES OF THIN MARGINS
Cattle rancher Cole Bolton and his wife in Texas. (Courtesy of Cole Bolton)
“What the real issue is, is the price differential between the big four packers and what they’re paying us for the product,” said Bolton, the owner of K&C Cattle Company.
Those margins, Bolton said, have been squeezed for decades. “Ranchers have dealt with such thin margins of profitability for the last 20 years.”
While ranchers like Bolton and Harris say Trump’s temporary expansion of U.S. beef imports from Argentina may help ease prices in the short term, both warn it is no substitute for rebuilding domestic production.
“Imports should be a bridge, not a long-term replacement,” Harris said. “We must rebuild the American cattle herd, protect American farmers and ensure transparency, so consumers understand where their beef comes from. Long-term affordability depends on a healthy, resilient domestic cattle industry — not permanent dependence on foreign beef.”
Brad Randel rounds up some of his Black Angus cattle to sell at auction on Sept. 12, 2022, in McCook, Nebraska. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post/Getty Images)
Years of drought, high feed costs and an aging ranching population have thinned herds, leaving the U.S. cattle supply at its lowest level in more than 70 years.
“I think it’s going to take a while to fix this crisis that we’re in with the cattle shortage. My message to consumers is simple: Folks, be patient. We’ve got to build back our herds,” Bolton told Fox News Digital.
He noted that the cattle industry, over the last five years, has weathered one setback after another, from market turmoil to extreme weather conditions.
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Los Angeles, Ca
Neighbors say Encino mansion brings rowdy parties, scantily clad women to quiet street
Residents of an Encino neighborhood said a home reportedly being used to create adult content has brought chaos and disruptive activity to their quiet street.
The home is located on Weddington Street in an upscale area of the San Fernando Valley.
Neighbors described the home as a hotspot for raging parties and constant visitors. Authorities have also been reportedly called to the home before.
“We’ve seen scantily clad women, almost half-naked,” a neighbor told KTLA’s Chris Wolfe. “People smoking marijuana in front of our home. We’ve seen disruptions. There have been parties.”
In a recent incident, Los Angeles Police Department officers responded to the house for a “swatting” incident, which is a hoax that involves someone reporting a false emergency to 911 to induce a large police presence.
Some neighbors accused the homeowner of creating unsavory content at the home, saying some of the company’s clients also reportedly model for the paid subscription platform OnlyFans, which can feature explicit sexual content.
Other neighbors complained about the home allegedly operating as a full-blown business on a quiet street filled with young families.
“We don’t care what content is being made,” one neighbor said. “You can’t start a production studio in a residential neighborhood.”
Residing at the home is Andy Bachman, CEO of a company called Creators Inc. One of the company’s logos can be seen prominently displayed on a large window.
“I work with modern digital entrepreneurs building audiences’ brands, products and businesses across all different platforms,” he told KTLA’s Chris Wolfe.
Bahcman denies his neighbors’ allegations, saying that his property is not being used as a backdrop for explicit adult material. He believes some of his neighbors are jumping to conclusions.
“I mean, everyone’s got rights to raise concerns and what I would hope is that those concerns are just based on facts rather than assumptions about an industry that they may not fully understand,” he said.
Although many neighbors have raised concerns, some tell KTLA they have no issue with the homeowner or any reported activity at the property.
Frustrated residents who have reported the home to city officials claim they were told that the home violates zoning laws, but no action against the homeowner has been taken.
A man accused of robbing a Culver City bank earlier this month has been arrested and charged after allegedly committing a similar robbery elsewhere in Los Angeles County, authorities announced Tuesday.
The robbery occurred June 2 around 1:10 p.m. at a bank in the 3800 block of Culver Center Drive, according to the Culver City Police Department.
Investigators said the suspect approached a teller window and handed over a note demanding money. Although the man never displayed a weapon, he repeatedly gestured toward his waistband and claimed he had a gun, causing employees to believe he was armed.
Fearing for their safety, bank employees complied with the demand, investigators said.
The suspect, described as a Black adult about 5 feet 10 inches tall with a heavy build, then fled on foot with approximately $10,000 in U.S. currency.
Following an investigation by Culver City detectives, with assistance from the department’s forensics unit, authorities identified the suspect as 35-year-old Shawn Greene.
On June 12, Greene was arrested by deputies from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s West Hollywood Station after he reportedly attempted to rob another bank, police said in an updated news release.
Culver City detectives interviewed Greene while he was in custody in West Hollywood, during which, police said, he admitted to the June 2 bank robbery in Culver City.
He has since been charged with two counts of bank robbery by the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office.
Anyone with additional information about the Culver City robbery is asked to contact Detective Stulp at 310-253-6312. Anonymous tips can be submitted through Los Angeles Regional Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477) or online at www.lacrimestoppers.org.
Metro officials said a suspicious item found at a train station prompted the partial closure of the K Line on Tuesday morning.
Details surrounding the “item” were not disclosed; however, Metro officials said in a statement that it was found on the tracks at the Fairview Heights station.
Metro officials called for assistance from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, who responded and closed the station.
Due to the closure, a bus shuttle is in operation to help get people between the Downtown Inglewood and Hyde Park stations.
As of 9 a.m. Tuesday, the shuttle system was still transporting people as the investigation continued.
No further details were released.
For the latest updates, Metro officials recommend going to the Metro alerts website or following @metrolaalerts on X.
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