The six Democratic senators representing the Delmarva Peninsula voted against a measure that would reverse the Biden administration’s decision to allow beef imports into the U.S. from Paraguay.
The U.S. Senate voted 70-25 Thursday to reverse the administration’s move to lift longstanding prohibitions on Paraguayan beef imports in an effort led by U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, D-Montana.
The agricultural and trade battle has divided Democrats and comes as U.S. beef prices could hit all-time record highs this year with production inventories at their lowest levels since the 1950s.
The White House “strongly opposes” the reversal, saying it will undermine U.S. trade relations including with Paraguay which has taken pro-U.S. stances related to Russia and China.
Paraguayan beef imports have been prohibited in the U.S. for the past 25 years over concerns about foot-and-mouth disease outbreaks.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reversed that ban in November.
Tester and other critics of the change — including U.S. farm groups — worry about impacts on U.S. food supplies.
The Senate vote saw Democrats split on the issue with 26 favoring reversing the Biden decision — including Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York along with Tester and U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Jacky Rosen of Nevada. The latter trio all face tough reelection bids in November.
Twenty-two Democrats — including Maryland’s Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin, Delaware’s Chris Coons and Tom Carper and Virginia’s Mark Warner and Tim Kaine — sided with Biden’s meat move.
Democratic senators from California, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Colorado and Connecticut split on the beef imports vote.
The split is less familiar territory for Democrats who often vote in lockstep on many issues.
“President Biden butchered this decision,” said Tester in a statement. “By cutting corners to resume beef imports from a country with a recent history of foot and mouth disease, the Biden Administration is jeopardizing our food supply and giving Montana consumers and producers a raw deal. We cannot allow beef imports from Paraguay until we have data that shows they are meeting same high animal health standards as American ranchers, and I’m proud to have secured overwhelming bipartisan support in the Senate to force the Biden administration to reverse course.”
‘MUST BE HALTED’
The measure still needs to pass the U.S. House.
Most Senate Republicans — including South Dakota’a Mike Rounds, Montana’s Steve Daines and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky — voted to re-impose the Paraguayan beef ban.
Rounds was the prime GOP sponsor of the measure.
U.S. agriculture and cattle industry groups — including the Livestock Marketing Association, National Farmers Union and R-CALF USA — also want Congress to nix the Biden administration’s decision.
“The last time U.S. government officials stepped foot in a Paraguayan meat processing facility was in 2014. That nearly ten-year gap since the last site visit does not inspire confidence in Paraguay’s animal health and food safety protocols,” said Justin Tupper, president of U.S. Cattlemen’s Association (USCA).
The group warns a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak (FMD) could cause as much as $99 billion in economic damages in the U.S.
Agriculture groups in Tester’s home state — including the Montana Farm Bureau Federation, Montana Farmers Union and Montana Stockgrowers Association — also backed the Senate measure.
“Until it can be absolutely proven that there is no risk of an infectious animal disease outbreak in the U.S. domestic animal population caused by these imports, they must be halted,” said Cyndi Johnson, president of the Montana Farm Bureau.
WHITE HOUSE PUSHES BACK
The Biden administration issued a statement to Congress March 19 opposing the Tester and Rounds-led measure.
“The administration strongly opposes passage of S.J. Res. 62, which would disapprove of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) action to allow imports of fresh beef from Paraguay into the United States. USDA conducted a rigorous scientific evaluation including site visits, a full risk analysis, and ongoing review of the region’s animal health status and concluded that the risk of fresh beef imports from Paraguay is low,” the White House said.
“If enacted, S.J. Res. 62 would undermine the credibility of long-standing science-based decision-making processes respected by the U.S. and upheld in our trade agreements, and could in turn severely threaten fair access to new and existing export markets for U.S. farmers and ranchers,” the White House statement to Congress continued.
The U.S. administration said the measure would indefinitely ban Paraguayan beef imports and “mark a significant setback in the United States-Paraguay bilateral relationship and U.S. credibility as a reliable economic partner across Latin America.”
The White House said a pullback could have national security and geopolitical ramifications, pointing to Paraguay’s condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and standing as the last South American country recognizing Taiwan.
China, in particular, has been making significant investments in Latin America and other developing regions. Russia restricted Paraguayan imports after the Ukraine rebuke.
The Biden administration warns re-instituting a U.S. ban could send Paraguay into the economic arms of Moscow and/or Beijing.
“Access to the U.S. market is critical for Paraguay to recover exports lost to Russia and to withstand pressure from the PRC to withdraw diplomatic recognition of Taiwan,” the White House contends.
Paraguayan beef imports would be a small slice of the total U.S. market — 0.05% of the total market and 0.5% of imports, according to an October 2023 analysis by the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service. The USDA arm also defended its decision to ease the ban.
RECORD HIGH BEEF PRICES?
The dustup over Paraguay beef imports also comes as U.S. beef production has been dropping and prices are on the rise.
Beef and veal prices were up 7.4% in February compared to a year ago, according to the Consumer Price Index.
The American Farm Bureau Federation said beef prices could hit record highs with supplies at their lowest since 1951.
The Farm Bureau said there were 87.2 million heads of cattle in the U.S. in January. That’s down the 8.9% from four years ago and the lowest inventories in 73 years.
“Farmers have been driven to sell off cattle because of severe drought conditions and the rising cost of supplies needed to support their herds. There are now fewer female cattle available for breeding, which means it will take time to restock the cattle population, AFBF said in a statement.
“The latest cattle numbers are a stark reminder of the challenges facing America’s farmers and ranchers,” said AFBF President Zippy Duvall. “Severe weather, high inflation and geopolitical uncertainty are taking a toll on farmers across the country, and families will see the effects in their grocery bills.”
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