OMAHA (DTN) -- President Donald Trump on Friday said he wants to give farmers and ranchers more authority to process their own meat, pitching the move as a strategy to challenge the control of the Big Four packing firms.

On Truth Social, Trump said, "Ranchers and Farmers have always been a number one priority for me. They work very hard, are smart, efficient, and immaculately CLEAN, but for years I have heard that they have had a tremendous problem with the Big Processors, who many say are a nasty Monopoly. There are, essentially, 4 of them, a very noncompetitive number, and they make life miserable for our wonderful Farmers and Ranchers, and I can't let that happen, can I? So in order to break this powerful monopoly, with much of its ownership based outside the U.S., I am authorizing legal documents to be drawn in order to allow Farmers and Ranchers to be given the right to PROCESS THEIR OWN FOOD. This should move quickly."

Farmers already can slaughter livestock for their own household consumption under federal law. The larger regulatory issue is whether meat processed outside a federally inspected facility can be sold to consumers, restaurants or retailers -- particularly across state lines.

The Justice Department has been investigating potential antitrust violations in cattle and beef markets, but it is unclear where the department stands with that investigation. The Big Four beef packers are Tyson, Cargill, JBS and National Beef Packing. JBS and National Beef are owned by Brazilian companies.

Trump's comments come amid backlash this week from beef producers over his proclamation that temporarily suspends tariffs on 300,000 metric tons (661.4 million pounds) of imported beef, starting Tuesday. The beef is expected to be lean trimmings that would be blended with U.S. beef for hamburger. Trump has said he expects the beef would be sold at a 25% discount.

As DTN reported, the leaders of nearly every major cattlemen's organization and major farm groups wrote to President Trump, urging him to reverse course on the import expansion. In one letter from four groups this week, leaders said the import plan would discourage investments in the U.S. cow herd. "Americans deserve safe and wholesome beef free from any market-distorting actions."

The president's social media post also comes after an interview he gave Wednesday with conservative radio host Glenn Beck. Bloomberg reported Beck complained that farmers "can't butcher" because of federal regulations, and Beck suggested the federal government should take on the big processors while expanding domestic processing.

"So, you're saying with less regulation, you think that the ranchers and farmers would do a very good job of processing the beef?" Trump asked Beck, according to Bloomberg.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, who often responds quickly when Trump posts about agricultural topics, then declared, "We're on it Mr. President!" on social platform X, adding that "big announcements" are starting Monday. Rollins said those include waiving red tape in processing; expanding ranchers' ability to sell across state lines; rescinding outdated guidance; adding technology for faster safety data; growing real support for small processors (funding and deregulation); fighting consolidation so small processors can compete; and expanding truth in labeling.

Rollins is scheduled to attend a federal forum Monday at the Nebraska State Fair with Republican members of Congress from the state. Beef policies will likely be a hot topic.

During the pandemic, Congress funded expansion of meat processing capacity, with USDA under the Biden administration committing $1 billion to increase independent meat and poultry processing through grants and loans under programs such as the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program (MPPEP). The Trump administration announced in early July it would make $60 million available under the MPPEP for grants to help expand domestic beef processing capacity. That includes awards ranging from $10,000 to $250,000 to buy equipment, or larger awards from $50,000 to $2 million to increase processing capacity.

At the same time, major packers such as Tyson are reducing their processing capacity. Tyson announced earlier this month it will close two beef processing plants in Illinois and Utah, and plans to sell another in Washington State.

The House version of the farm bill also included a pilot program based on the Processing Revival and Intrastate Meat Exemption (PRIME) Act that lets states allow the sale of custom-slaughtered meat directly to local buyers without a federal USDA inspection, relying instead on state inspection. Farmers would be able to market retail cuts in local stores and restaurants under the bill.

Outgoing Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., who led the bill, plugged the PRIME Act after seeing Trump's social media post.

"This is great, but it should be a law, not just an executive order. My PRIME Act has dozens of bipartisan sponsors in the House & Senate. A pilot program for it is in the House farm bill. Pass the PRIME Act so consumers can get affordable U.S. beef and farmers can flourish!" Massie stated.

Also see: "Major Cattle, Farm Groups Press Trump to Reverse Course on Beef Imports," https://www.dtnpf.com/….

Also see: "Breaking Down How Producers Use LRP to Protect Feeder Cattle Prices," https://www.dtnpf.com/….

Chris Clayton can be reached at Chris.Clayton@dtn.com

Follow him on social platform X @ChrisClaytonDTN

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