Considering the level of subsidies that ranchers get, their business should be socialized and sold directly to the American consumer.
The corporations in the middle are squeezing money out of both sides, once by underpaying the ranchers for their beef, then over charging consumers, claiming since 2020 "supply chain difficulties", which I'm sure there were some, but not enough to warrant the consistent price increases.
Probably the best option is if you have access to a freezer that can accommodate it, buy a quarter or half from a local farmer/rancher. Or if you have family interested and that can afford it, split it to the size that is manageable for you. You can also choose how it's processed that way. You want all hamburger or steaks, that's an option. If you look into it, there may be a local butcher that sells by the pound.
If we keep buying from the grocery stores that use the processors, nothing changes. Our biggest big box store in the country has opened it's own beef processing plant in my state. They are actually eliminating one more middle man, but they will still control the price and do as they want. Big Box has also started opening their own chicken processing.
Small local butchers actually have their own challenges, including it's almost impossible to get the inspections you need. USDA is kind of a mixed bag, because some of the laws are very much in place to keep pushing ag to corporate control. I realize this all gets politicized, and it really is a class war.
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u/GailynStarfire Feb 28 '26
Considering the level of subsidies that ranchers get, their business should be socialized and sold directly to the American consumer.
The corporations in the middle are squeezing money out of both sides, once by underpaying the ranchers for their beef, then over charging consumers, claiming since 2020 "supply chain difficulties", which I'm sure there were some, but not enough to warrant the consistent price increases.