Last week, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins – alongside Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr., and Small Business Administrator Kelly Loeffler – announced an action plan aimed at strengthening the American beef industry.
Secretary Rollins noted that the United States has lost over 17% of its family farms over the last ten years. Consumer demand has grown by 9% in this timeframe; meanwhile, the national cattle supply is at a 75-year low. Through deregulation and the removal of longstanding barriers to ranching, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) seeks to invest in the beef industry by incentivizing new cattle ranchers to enter the field.
Below, we provide a summary of USDA’s “Plan to Fortify the American Beef Industry” (“the plan”).
Plan Priorities
USDA has identified three priorities for its plan:
- Protecting and improving the business of ranching can be achieved through means such as endangered species reform, enhanced disaster relief, increased grazing access, increased access to capital, affordable risk management tools, and reducing costs for new and young ranchers.
- Expanding processing, consumer transparency, and market access, to be achieved through lowering costs, increasing marketing options, emphasizing “Product of USA” labeling, and ensuring consumers have access to clear and truthful information about American beef.
- Building demand alongside domestic supply, to be achieved by growing the domestic herd, boosting domestic and international demand, farm-to-school grants, and protein-focused Dietary Guidelines.
We discuss each of these priorities in greater detail below.
Protecting and Improving the Business of Ranching
Key points of this objective are as follows:
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- A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between USDA and the Department of the Interior (DOI) is anticipated in November 2025, the goal of which will be to expand grazing on federal lands and provide support and relief to America’s ranchers. Currently, there are roughly 29,000 grazing allotments nationwide, and about 10% are vacant. USDA and DOI intend to host regional meetings to identify producer priorities, bridge the gap between policy and field realities, and establish a liaison for wildfire incidents that may affect permitted grazing.
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- The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will work to modernize permitting guidance and reduce backlogs for permit renewals and annual operating instructions.
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- The DOI and USDA will collaborate to develop new standards of evidence for compensating ranchers for predations by wolves, bears, and coyotes in the American southwest.
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- USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) will work to improve the Livestock Indemnity Program and the Livestock Forage Program to offer higher and earlier payment rates to producers, and to include coverage for unborn livestock and increased coverage for livestock lost to predation.
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- USDA’s Risk Management Agency (RMA) has amended the definition of “beginning farmer” from 5 years to 10 years to expand the reach of available benefits. USDA has also enhanced subsidies.
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- USDA seeks to increase veteran-owned and -operated ranches by prioritizing grant applications in the Enhancing Agricultural Opportunities for Military Veterans program and encouraging ranching-focused outreach and education.
Expanding Processing, Consumer Transparency, and Market Access
Key points of this objective are as follows:
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- As of January 1, 2026, USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) will begin enforcing compliance for products bearing voluntary U.S.-origin label claims. Only products that have been born, raised, and slaughtered in the U.S. will be eligible to make such claims, reserving any associated benefits for American producers and processors only. FSIS has advised that it will conduct regional webinars and issue guidance in late 2025 to support the appropriate use of claims.
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- FSIS plans to temporarily reduce the costs of its overtime and holiday inspection services for small and very small meat, poultry, and egg establishments for FY2026. These fees will be cut by 75% for very small processors and by 30% for small processors. The goal of the fee reduction is to incentivize longer operational hours and an expansion in processing capacity.
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- In late 2025, USDA’s Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBCS) will announce a fourth round of grant funding through the Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program, focusing on small processors and local supply chains. Awards will total up to $2 million each. Applications will require submission in early 2026 for grants announced in Q2 of 2026. RBCS will additionally prioritize beef processors within USDA’s Guaranteed Business and Industry Loan Program, and the U.S. Small Business Administration will prioritize low-interest loans to new small meat processors.
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- USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) will continue the collection and publishing of information related to the marketing of cattle and beef products in an effort to support producers in making educated marketing decisions. USDA intends to enhance this effort by leveraging emerging technologies to maximize efficiency and ease of producer access. The Livestock Mandatory Reporting, Cattle Contract Library, and other reporting tools will be made available. AMS also aims to pilot LiDAR and AI-based technology in early 2026 to assess feeder cattle against USDA standards, which will expand the availability of market and price information at auction barns.
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- AMS intends to expand its remote grading and Instrument Enhanced Grading programs. Use of these programs reduces staffing needs and should bring costs down for meat processors of all sizes, improving producers’ access to well-regarded grades like USDA Prime and USDA Choice.
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- The Environmental Health and Protection Agency (EPA) has withdrawn the Effluent Limitations Guidelines and Standards rule, which aimed to improve water quality and would have imposed a costly compliance burden on small and midsize operations in particular.
Building Demand Alongside Domestic Supply
Key points of this objective are as follows:
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- USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) is promoting locally grown foods in its Child Nutrition Programs, as well as accepting applications for the FY2026 Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program to support the creation and implementation of farm-to-school programs. Applications will be accepted until December 5, and awards are expected within the following three to six months.
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- USDA and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) intend to release the 2025-2030 Dietary Guidelines for Americans no later than December 31, 2025. These guidelines, which serve as the basis for several food programs, will encourage protein as the foundation for every meal. Recent public comments by HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., suggest that the guidelines may encourage higher levels of saturated fat consumption, in opposition to prior messaging. Saturated fat is a nutrient commonly associated with beef and dairy products.
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We hope you find this summary useful. Please contact us if you have any questions or seek additional information.