President Donald Trump’s plan to greatly increase the nation’s importation of beef from Argentina will hurt New Mexico’s cattle ranchers at an already difficult time, New Mexico’s three U.S. House members said in a letter this week to the federal Agriculture Department secretary.
The Trump administration recently announced the administration’s plan to quadruple the amount of Argentine beef it imports, an attempt to lower nationwide beef prices, according to Reuters. The news followed a $20 billion currency swap deal with Argentina that Democrats have blasted as a “bailout” of the country’s right-wing president.
U.S. Reps. Gabe Vasquez, Teresa Leger Fernández and Melanie Stansbury, all New Mexico Democrats, said Trump’s reported plan to increase Argentine beef exports from 20,000 metric tons to 80,000 metric tons will undercut New Mexico cattle ranchers on the cusp of their first good year in a long time.
“From years of drought to soaring input costs, New Mexico’s ranchers have barely turned a profit,” the delegation wrote in the Monday letter to Secretary Brooke Rollins. “This plan to flood the market with foreign beef will take money out of the pockets of New Mexico’s ranchers with questionable benefits to consumers.”
The letter cites a USDA analysis from August showing that New Mexico ranchers’ sale of about 1.3 million cattle and calves contributed $1.7 billion to the state economy in 2023, the most recent available data.
“Ranching is not just a job, it’s a way of life in our rural communities,” the lawmakers wrote. “New Mexico’s ranchers deserve a federal government that looks out for them rather than one that gives a handout to foreign producers.”
According to a USDA September price outlook, cattle prices reached record highs in August and September, with slaughter steers now selling for more than $240 per 100 lbs, a $54 increase over last year.
Another factor driving up beef prices is the halt of cattle imports from Mexico, roughly half of which come through New Mexico ports of entry. The border has been closed to Mexican cattle imports since July due to fears about a New World screwworm, a parasitic fly.
The lawmakers said Trump should halt any plans to increase Argentine beef imports and should instead go after “price gouging” in the meatpacking industry. They pointed to a recent $87.5 million settlement two of the nation’s largest meatpacking companies reached last month over accusations they inflated meat prices by restricting supply, Reuters reported.
The House members’ letter is the second rebuke from New Mexico’s congressional delegation. U.S. Sens. Martin Heinrich and Ben Ray Luján, also Democrats, issued a similar statement Oct. 28.
