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Posted on 09/08/2026 5:48:15 AM PDT by Twotone
It’s a definite maybe.
President Donald Trump met with ranchers in the Oval Office on Friday, signing two executive orders to incentivize the domestic production of beef: Supporting America’s Ranchers and Promoting Fair Competition In Livestock Markets And Expanding Market Access for American Meat Producers.
The orders were modest, and reactions were mixed. Rancher and advocate Amanda Radke wrote on social media that Trump’s orders “aren’t an overnight fix to the broken system that American beef cattle producers have had to operate under for so many years, but it’s a historic step in the right direction that we should all celebrate.”
The president’s orders cover topics of considerable interest to cattlemen, but they also look like this, one of several directives to Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins: “Within 60 days of the date of this order, the Secretary shall submit to the President a report identifying Federal statutory provisions, as well as trade considerations, that restrict or prohibit State-inspected or custom exempt meat products from entering interstate commerce.”
So in substance, the president has ordered the executive branch to send him a bunch of reports: on wolves and cattle predation, on country of origin labeling, on independent meat processing and simpler interstate market access for meat products.
On social media, the White House explicitly framed the orders as an opening move, writing that Trump had “launched a whole-of-government effort to protect & fully support America’s ranchers.” Rollins echoed that theme: “MORE TO COME SO SOON,” she wrote.
Cattle herds have been declining in the United States for years, and the number of cattlemen has declined alongside that loss. An agricultural census from the Department of Agriculture reported that the US went from 729,046 farms with beef cattle in 2017 to 622,162 farms with beef cattle in 2021, while a more recent report estimated a total of “27.6 million beef cows in the United States as of Jan. 1, 2026,” down from 31.7 million in 2017. Drought and rising production costs have shrunk herds, as ranchers try to do the math on selling for immediate payment versus retaining cattle for breeding and growth.
Wolf predation has become a serious problem for cattlemen in the West, especially following the reintroduction of the gray wolf. Cows are becoming wolf food. In California, researchers at UC Davis concluded that “72% of wolf scat samples tested during the 2022 and 2023 summer seasons contained cattle DNA.”
Populations have rebounded significantly since the gray wolf was listed as an endangered species in most of the country in 1978, preventing ranchers from killing them in response to predation. The Arizona rancher Casey Murph has described “the feeling of having to ride away to the sound of a pack of Mexican Grey wolves tearing your border collie herding dog to pieces,” one of many examples of ranchers arguing that the threat of wolf attacks isn’t well understood outside of cattle country.
Again, Trump’s orders regarding wolves are mostly tentative and procedural, directing Rollins and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum to bring him more reports on the possibility of fully delisting gray wolves as an endangered species. But the final measure more directly suggests a return to a policy of killing at least some wolves in cattle country: “The Secretary of the Interior shall consider amending regulations or providing additional guidance, consistent with applicable law, to revise the Department’s criteria for authorizing lethal gray wolf and Mexican wolf removal and to enable greater emergency responsiveness, including precision targeting, for situations involving predator threats to human safety or threats to domestic livestock.”
Whatever the administration’s real actions turn out to be, somewhere past the sixty day mark when these orders might turn into policies, Congress continues to just sit there like a speed bump. A pilot version of the PRIME Act, allowing an expansion of meat processing for market into state-inspected facilities without USDA inspectors, passed the House and then died in the Senate. Similarly, legislation to require mandatory country of origin labeling for beef is advancing through the Senate committee process, but no one there seems to be in a hurry about it.
Whatever happens next, advocates for ranchers are taking the meeting in the Oval Office as a sign that the administration is at least aware that it has a problem to address after the unpopular decision to encourage the duty-free importation of 300,000 metric tons of foreign ground beef.
“That was a room of real ranchers, real rural Americans, real voices,” independent journalist Keely Covello wrote after attending the meeting. “And those voices were heard.”
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I also heard they were going to relax the rules on slaughtering so they could process their own cattle.
Direct buying should help break the processing monopoly.
If you can buy a fish directly off the dock (most places you can), it should be the same for other types of food.
If you’re speaking of farm to market, yes, a very good thing. I would much rather go that way.
They also need to fix the penalties of passing down a generational ranch to children (kin). Most cannot afford the taxes on a large ranch, which is masked by kids being citified and not wanting it and just selling it off and the only people that can afford and big ranch are corporations or the big money people like Gates who has made his intentions for our food supply clear.
I had heard that there are an inordinate percentage of muslims working at the monopolistic slaughterhouses.
A pilot version of the PRIME Act, allowing an expansion of meat processing for market into state-inspected facilities without USDA inspectors, passed the House and then died in the Senate.
John Thune strikes again.
I buy a 1/4 steer direct from a local cattle rancher and save a lot of money and the beef is excellent.
Abolishing the Senate is sounding like a better idea every day.
This country is stuck on stupid. The government has ceased to represent the needs of the people even when it is easy.
Doz diz mean vee doan eat ze bugs?
How many pounds of beef is a 1/4 steer?
The reason I ask is that I shot a white tail buck last November. it was about 185 pounds field dressed.
I ended up with two boxes of meat. Probably 60-70 pounds of steaks, roasts, burger and sausage. We have almost run out of steaks and roasts. We still have probably thirty one pound packages of sausage and burger. It is a lot of meat for two people to eat.
Luckily, our daughter has a walk in freezer. Where the boxes are up on the top shelf. We have a 15 cubic foot freezer in the basement. It would have pretty much filled that.
So, my question to you again is how many pounds of meat is that 1/4 steer and where do you keep it?
I agree-that needs to be fixed too. But I am appreciative that Trump, with all the other things he is doing, can delegate and get things accomplished. I don’t see this as out of his wheelhouse.
Getting rid of the 17th would be better, also term limits and expanding the number of house members would make the government more responsive.
What we have right now is not functioning in the best interest of the American people.
This House is is probably large enough. Already comparable in size to other national legislatures. Additionally its currently unwieldy and inefficient. Think Star Wars imperial Senate scene. (You don’t want to be governed by anything efficient!) Larger House will put more power in staff. They already have enough. Better to term limit the House and require Congressional member supporting staff to come from the Congressional district. That the district’s voice and interests are always present.
Repeal the 17th Amendment, Senator staff must come from the state again to unsure state interests & knowledge are present. I even think maybe they should 6 year state government rotation positions. Rotate back to state unless asked to stay by new Senator. Maybe even build a large nice Senate/House apartment building for these employees. They stay rent free as long as they have the positions.
I am all about pushing power down to the states. Supersizing the House is the opposite of that!
This matches what I remember:
AI Summary
how many pounds of meat is a 1/4 beef?
A quarter beef typically yields between 100 to 150 pounds of meat, depending on the size and weight of the entire animal.
New Life On A Homestead
Meat Yield from a Quarter Beef
Understanding the yield can help in planning your purchase.
Weight Range — A quarter cow usually provides about 100 to 150 pounds of meat.
Hanging Weight — If the hanging weight is around 250 pounds, the take-home meat is likely 150 to 175 pounds.
Variety of Cuts — The meat includes a mix of steaks, ground beef, and other cuts.
Storage — Properly stored, this bulk meat can last for several months.
“Cattle herds have been declining in the United States for years, and the number of cattlemen has declined alongside that loss.” My three children sure don’t want anything to do with the operation.
Depending on the steer and the weather a quarter is usually between 80 and 90 pounds of various cuts and ground. Last spring I think we paid 8.50 per pound. Higher than usual but much lower than the supermarket. The market for venison is huge and to buy it is crazy expensive.
I was speaking of farm to market much the same way I used to go to the fishermen’s dock when I lived on the Outer Banks.
You could buy croaker, mahi mahi and shrimp that were the size of small lobsters.
I would take them to my friends when I visited Virginia and they couldn’t believe I could just buy such quality food for so low a price.
I was not trying to debate on the pricing. I just wondered how much beef a 1/4 steer was. Plus where you store 80-90 pounds of beef. As I previously stated, I had an issue storing 50 pounds of venison.
Yes I have always thought of wolves are near extinct. They certainly are in Europe and the UK.
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