The government has imported thousands of pounds of beef, but prices for consumers have remained stubbornly high.
The Farm Bureau Federation tracked ground beef prices at 41 grocery stores across 22 states. It found the average price only dropped $0.16 a pound, from $7.29 to $7.13. But there was no change at 30 of those 41 stores.
The federation says constraints on cattle supplies and strong consumer demand have been keeping prices high.
In January, Americas cattle inventory hit a 75 year low.
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Meanwhile, four meat packing companies control about 85% of the countrys beef processing, and none have commented on how the increase in foreign beef will be handled. It’s also unclear if the imported beef will be labeled as such, so shoppers know what theyre buying.
Some industry experts say efforts to import more meat still aren’t likely to move the needle much for consumers.
“What’s probably going to happen with this beef that’s being imported is the packers are going to mix it with domestic beef, pocket the savings, and the consumer is not going to see that much relief at the end of the day,” Farmer Jim Bourne told Scripps News.