美国总统唐纳德·特朗普周五宣布，其政府已达成一项“协议”，允许在未来90天内进口最多30万公吨碎牛肉，并放宽相关关税。他声称此举旨在降低碎牛肉的价格。
特朗普周五上午在社交媒体上写道：“［……］在未来90天内，美国将允许最多30万公吨的碎牛肉产品以免配额外关税进口。我们已承诺，这些牛肉的售价将比当前市场价格低25%。”
白宫官员重申，外国牛肉出口商将提供25%的折扣，“以惠及美国消费者”，作为换取关税减免的交换条件。不过，该官员并未透露哪些外国出口商参与了谈判及此项承诺。
该官员还告诉美国广播公司（ABC News），总统将在未来两周内正式签署相关行政令。
这项为期90天的牛肉关税临时减免措施将跨越中期选举。目前，食品杂货价格正是选民最关心的核心议题。
根据美国劳工统计局最近的报告，上月牛肉和小牛肉价格同比飙升9．4%。此外，美国农业部去年也表示，美国活牛供应量已降至75年来的最低点，而需求却在持续增加。
特朗普周五的这一宣布正值美国农民和牧场主因伊朗战争导致国内化肥和柴油价格高企而备受煎熬之际。不过，农民和共和党国会议员此前曾对增加外国牛肉进口表示担忧，强调需从国内层面解决高昂的牛肉成本问题。
白宫官员表示，政府正“同时与牧场主合作，长期扩大国内牛肉产量”，并称特朗普的宣布是一项“短期”举措，旨在“允许外国进口填补空缺，以可负担的价格满足国内对碎牛肉的需求”。
特朗普在周五的帖子中写道：“这笔交易在为美国伟大的牛群重新繁衍留出空间的同时，也将降低美国民众的购买价格。”
此前，政府也曾多次努力促进外国牛肉进口。今年2月，特朗普签署了一项公告，临时增加瘦牛肉边角料的关税配额，以使碎牛肉更加亲民。该公告允许部分瘦牛肉边角料免关税进口。
美国农业部（USDA）大力宣扬特朗普关于牛肉进口配额的宣布，称这证明了他致力于“降低美国民众日常商品成本”，并表示此举将“有助于解决牛肉价格过高的问题”。
然而，来自农业州的几位共和党人对此计划表示反对。
蒙大拿州共和党参议员蒂姆·希伊（Tim Sheehy）周五表示，他一年来一直“建议特朗普不要采取这一行动”。
他在社交媒体上写道：“……现实情况是，此举将使美国牧场主更难重建牛群并为美国民众降低价格。最重要的是，这将伤害那些为全美提供食物的牧场主家庭。”
今年秋季面临连任竞选的内布拉斯加州共和党参议员皮特·里基茨（Pete Ricketts）也在社交媒体上发文称，“向市场倾销低质量牛肉将损害内布拉斯加州的农民和牧场主的利益。”
代表美国养牛户和牛肉行业的全国养牛人牛肉协会（NCBA）首席执行官科林·伍德尔（Colin Woodall）也批评了特朗普的宣布，称此举是“牺牲长期稳定来换取短期的政治宣传”。
代表44个州18万名养牛户的全国养牛人牛肉协会首席说客伊森·莱恩（Ethan Lane）表示，特朗普政府免除碎牛肉进口关税的新计划让农业州的选民（他们曾投票支持总统）感到沮丧。
他告诉美国广播公司：“今天有很多养牛户感到沮丧，很多人觉得这不是他们投票支持的愿景。他们投票选出的总统，本应带来小政府和自由市场，但现在的做法却让人感觉政府再次以重拳干预市场，试图安抚消费者或武断地压低牛肉价格。”
莱恩表示，在宣布该计划后与牧场主和其他州官员交谈时，他没有遇到“任何认为这是个好主意或对供应有帮助的人”。
他说：“自总统今早宣布该计划以来，我们看到活牛市场全面下跌，这给了养牛户他们未曾预料和期待的又一次经济打击。”
Trump announces temporary pause of beef import tariffs in effort to lower prices ahead of midterms
President Donald Trump announced on Friday that his administration has reached a ＂deal＂ to allow imports of up to 300，000 metric tons of ground beef for the next 90 days， easing tariffs and claiming that it＇s part of an effort to lower the price of ground beef．
＂［．．．］ for the next 90 days， the United States will allow up to 300，000 metric tons of product for ground beef to be imported with no out of quota tariff．We have a commitment that this beef will be sold at 25 percent below current market prices，＂ Trump wrote in a social media post Friday morning．
A White House official reiterated that foreign beef exporters will provide a 25% discount on beef exports ＂to be passed along to American consumers＂ in exchange for tariff relief， though they did not disclose which foreign exporters were involved in the negotiations and in that commitment．
The official also told ABC News that the president will formally sign an executive order on the matter within the next two weeks．
This temporary easing of some beef tariffs， which the president said would span 90 days， would be in effect beyond the midterm elections， wheregrocery prices are top of mind for voters．
According to a recent Bureau of Labor and Statistics Report， beef and veal prices soared 9．4% last month compared to a year earlier． Last year， the U．S． Department of Agriculture alsosaidthe U．S． cattle supply had also reached a 75-year low while demand has continued to increase．
The president＇s announcement on Friday comes as farmers and ranchers continue to suffer domestically from high fertilizer and diesel prices as a result of the Iran war． But farmers and Republican members of Congress have previously raisedconcernsover increasing foreign beef imports， emphasizing the need to address high beef costs domestically．
The White House official said the administration is ＂simultaneously working with ranchers to expand domestic beef production＂ in the long term， calling Trump＇s announcement a ＂short-term＂ action to allow ＂foreign imports to fill a gap to meet domestic ground beef demand at affordable prices．＂
＂This deal will reduce prices for Americans while giving space for our Great American Beef Herd to grow again，＂ Trump wrote in his Friday post．
The administration has previously made efforts to promote foreign beef imports． In February， Trump signed aproclamationtemporarily increasing the U．S． tariff-rate quota for lean beef trimmings in an effort to make ground beef more affordable． The proclamation had allowed some lean beef trimmings to be imported tariff free．
The USDA is touting Trump＇s announcement on beef import quotas as demonstrative of his commitment to ＂lowering the cost of everyday goods for the American people＂ and saying this will ＂help address the affordability of beef．＂
Several Republicans from farm states have come out against the plan．
Republican Montana Sen． Tim Sheehy said on Friday that he has advised Trump ＂against this course of action for a year．＂
＂．．． The reality is this action will make it more difficult for American ranchers to rebuild our herd and bring prices down for the American people． And most importantly， this will harm our ranching families who feed the nation，＂ Sheehy wrote in a social media post．
Republican Nebraska Sen． Pete Ricketts who is up for reelection this fall， wrote in a social media post that ＂flooding the market with lower quality beef compromises Nebraska farmers and ranchers．＂
Colin Woodall， the CEO of the National Cattlemen＇s Beef Association， which represents America＇s cattle producers and beef industry， also criticized Trump＇s announcement， saying the move ＂sacrifices long-term stability for short term messaging．＂
Ethan Lane， the top lobbyist for the National Cattlemen＇s Beef Association， which represents 180，000 cattle producers across 44 states， said the Trump administration＇s new plan to waive import tariffs for ground beef is frustrating farm state producers who voted for the president．
＂We have a lot of frustrated producers today， a lot folks that feel like this isn＇t what they voted for，＂he told ABC News． ＂They voted for a president they thought was going to be giving them limited government and free markets and instead this feels very much like the heavy hand of governmentcoming into their marketplace yet again in an effort to placate consumers or try to arbitrarily lower beef prices．＂
In talking to ranchers and other state officials after the announcement， Lane said he hasn＇t ＂talked to anybody＂ who ＂believes that it＇s a good idea or helpful for the supply．＂
＂Since the announcement this morning from the president， we have seen down cattle markets across the board， more hits to producers＇ pocketbooks that they weren＇t looking for and weren＇t expecting，＂ he said．
