Protecting Farmers and Ranchers From Anti-competitive Practices
The USDA and the Justice Department have announced new efforts to step up enforcement of anti-competitive practices that hurt farmers and ranchers.
Attorney General Merrick Garland joined USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack in making the announcement.
“Today we are announcing a new joint initiative to better coordinate efforts between the USDA and DOJ. ..the launch of a centralized accessible portal; a one-stop-shop to report complaints of potential violations of our competition laws.”
Garland said there will be a new joint DOJ-USDA panel to deal with those complaints.
President Biden hosted a roundtable with farmers, ranchers, an independent poultry processor, and members of his Cabinet to discuss the need for greater competition in beef, pork, and poultry processing and to announce the Administration’s Action Plan for a Fairer, More Competitive, and More Resilient Meat and Poultry Supply Chain.
US Senator Steve Daines of Montana said the move is a positive step forward with more action needed. Daines co-sponsored legislation to establish a special investigator at USDA regarding competition in cattle markets and ag and has called on the USDA to immediately suspend fresh beef imports from Brazil.
