Not Just Cattle. Argentine Beef Imports Could Hurt MN Dairy, Too.

By Tadeo Ruiz Sandoval

With dairy prices low, producers are looking everywhere to make an extra buck. And the Trump Administration's plan to import Argentine beef could upend the one edge dairy farmers had.

Many dairy farmers send their cows to be processed for meat to boost their profitability.  And with high beef prices, that’s proved to be a big help.

“When you send those cows away, when they're done being milk cows, you're going to get a higher value for them,” Minnesota Department of Agriculture Commissioner Thom Petersen said. “That's where the value has been, much better today than it was a few years ago.”

With U.S. cattle inventory at a historic low, beef prices have surged, causing sticker shock at the supermarket. President Donald Trump announced a plan to quadruple Argentine beef imports in hopes of lowering prices.

But Petersen said the market should be allowed to self-correct rather than be meddled with. If herds build over time, the farm economy could stabilize better, he said.

“So when you think about America first, you think about food security for our nation, for having a quality beef program,” Petersen said.

Christine Leonard is a Minnesota dairy farmer from Norwood Young America. She said the news of increasing beef imports angered many in the farming community. 

“I can tell you that there were a lot of people who were really upset when they heard that,” Leonard said. “It kind of went against what the whole administration had been talking about. As far as American-grown things, and then to talk about bringing in beef from another country is kind of wild.”

Leonard also said she’s worried about potentially bringing in diseases from Argentina through these beef imports. 

“We really want to worry that we're not getting any sort of infectious diseases or bugs or anything like that coming in with the import of other cattle,” Leonard said. “To make sure that we're keeping our animals safe and really keeping the health of our own cattle herd in mind.”

The Trump Administration has acknowledged Argentina’s history with the disease and said it’ll keep tabs on the illness through its import monitoring.