USDA Seeks $11.1B Aid; USTR Recommends Lamb-Import Safeguard Probe

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins recently urged Congress to approve billions of dollars in additional funding for farmers, saying the money would provide a temporary bridge while the administration works to reshape U.S. farm policy. She testified before the Senate Appropriations Committee as part of a broader request for an 80-$7.6 billion supplemental spending bill, her request was for $11.1 billion.

The American sheep industry is welcoming a recommendation from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative for the U.S. International Trade Commission to launch a formal safeguard investigation into lamb imports. The recommendation follows a formal safeguard petition filed by ASI in October of 2025 on behalf of its state associations and more than 100,000 sheep farms and ranches across the country, ASI says the USTR recommendation is based on market data, import trends, and evidence of financial injury included in the organization's petition. ASI Executive Director Mike Michner

“So we've submitted both public and confidential industry data documenting the financial harm to domestic lamb companies and sheep producers. We're not trying to stop imports. That's not what this case is about. There were imports before the surge in 2020. There'll be imports after this case is over. This is about determining whether the import surge has caused serious injury and whether temporary safeguards are needed to restore fair competition.”

ASI's Mike Michner.