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On November 20, 2020, in LaGrange, Indiana, Michigan, the freezer area where turkey flesh is held for distribution and slicing is photographed ahead of Thanksgiving and amid the coronavirus illness (COVID-19) outbreak. Emily Elconin/REUTERS (Reuters) – CHICAGO, July 9 (Reuters) – After consumers were restricted from purchasing meat during the COVID-19 outbreak last year, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced on Friday that the US government will invest at least $500 million to expand beef, pork, and poultry processing capacity. Vilsack said at a news conference in Council Bluffs, Iowa, that money from a $1.9 trillion pandemic relief package approved in March will be awarded to meat processors in the form of grants and loans to make the supply chain more resilient and increase competition in the sector. President Joe Biden signed an executive order directing the US Department of Agriculture to combat “abusive practices of some meat processors” and encourage more competition in the US economy. find out more Cattle ranchers claim that there are too few processing companies that acquire livestock for processing into beef, requiring them to accept the one and only bid they receive for their animals. Ranchers are now selling cattle at a loss, despite the fact that meat companies profit from selling beef to consumers, according to Vilsack. “It seems to me that profit should go both ways in fairness,” he added. Slaughterhouses were forced to close temporarily during the COVID-19 pandemic as workers became ill, drawing increased scrutiny on the meatpacking industry. When large meat plants close, meat supplies become scarce, and ranchers are left with cattle that would have been slaughtered otherwise. As a result, cattle prices are generally declining, while meat prices in supermarkets are increasing. Concerns over concentration in the cattle industry were raised last month when a cyberattack against the North American unit of Brazilian meatpacker JBS SA (JBSS3.SA) knocked down U.S. beef factories. find out more Biden’s order instructs the USDA to consider new rules that will make it easier for farmers to file and win legal claims against large processors. In June, the USDA announced three new rules to strengthen enforcement of the Packers and Stockyards Act, which was passed 100 years ago to protect farmers from unfair trade practices. Biden’s order, according to the North American Meat Institute, which represents meat producers, will “open the floodgates for litigation.” “Government intervention in the market will raise the cost of food for consumers at a time when many are still suffering from the economic effects of the pandemic,” said Julie Anna Potts, president of the Meat Institute. Tom Polansek contributed reporting, and Franklin Paul and Aurora Ellis edited the piece. The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles are our standards./nRead More

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