Rancher Nathan Bradford said this year, he's seen record-high prices for the cattle he raises at G-Line Ranch in Bristow. He and his family also grow hay and process deer, but he said their expenses have climbed over the past few years.
"So for us, it's been just an ongoing struggle but the last couple years we've been looking really promising," Bradford said.
Recently the Trump Administration mentioned it was looking to import more beef from Argentina. Bradford is not a fan of the idea.
Right now, he and his son are doing long-term planning and thinking about new investments while beef prices are at an all-time high.
"Just in the last month we've got over $10,000 in repairs to some older equipment," Bradford said. "Hoping that, you know, these high prices will stay here just to try to try to get through."
Beef prices are soaring mainly because the nation's cattle herd is the lowest it's been since 1951 while consumer demand has remained strong. Cattle numbers are low largely because of drought.
Recently, national and local farm and ranch groups have criticized the idea of importing more beef.
Oklahoma is the second largest cattle-producing state in the nation, according to the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture Food and Forestry. Scott Blubaugh, president of the Oklahoma Farmers Union and American Farmers and Ranchers, said he is shocked at the move.
"We didn't get here overnight with the smallest cattle herd in nearly a century." Blubaugh said. "Now, it's been a process that's taken decades of lots of bad things."
He said a few years ago producers raising cattle were losing money and processors were making the gains. Although there are still challenges like rising input costs and inflation, ranchers are seeing profits for the first time in years.
Oklahoma Farm Bureau President Rodd Moesel said his organization is concerned about bringing in more Argentinian beef because producers are under stress. He said there needs to be good years to offset the bad ones.
"Beef is one of the few areas that's actually profitable and supporting itself," Moesel said. "And we're very blessed here in Oklahoma that a lot of our even crop farmers have some beef and that's moderating the effect of how bad the crop markets are, if they do have some beef cattle."
There are signals in the market for producers to keep rather than sell cattle to raise more animals and rebuild their herds. But that takes time because breeding new calves takes months.
Moesel said Trump should let the markets play out and correct themselves. If the plan to increase Argentina beef imports goes through, Blubaugh said he thinks it could shrink the U.S. herd even further.
For consumers, Derrell Peel, a livestock marketing specialist with Oklahoma State University Extension, said he doesn't think the move will lower prices.
Currently, the U.S. is importing more meat from other countries to make up the difference, and Peel said Argentina accounts for about 2% of the nation's total beef imports.
"So even a significant increase in the level of imports from Argentina will really not materially affect overall beef supplies in the U.S.," Peel said. "It probably won't be even detectable in terms of a data standpoint.."
He said the steps to increase production and lower prices at the grocery store take time.
"The thing is that there's really nothing that anybody can do in the short-run to materially change things," Peel said.
In an email, a U.S. Department of Agriculture spokesperson said the Trump administration is focused on lowering prices for consumers and pointed to a newly-released plan for the beef industry. The spokesperson did not directly address questions regarding the plan to purchase beef from Argentina.
"Building back the herd will take time but Secretary Rollins is committed to reduce risk for cattle producers, deliver robust disaster relief to cattle country, and support new and beginning ranchers across the country," the spokesperson wrote. "These actions coupled with President Trump's work to secure lasting markets for beef producers abroad sends a strong message to American cattle producers - raise more beef and rebuild the herd."
For Bradford, he would like the government to show more support and confidence in farmers and ranchers.
"I think that the government needs to be looking at special programs, maybe like lowering interest rates, special terms and conditions, find ways to support small towns and to where we can expand our current operations," Bradford said.
This report was produced by the Oklahoma Public Media Exchange, a collaboration of public media organizations. Help support collaborative journalism by donating at the link at the top of this webpage.
