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Americans might be stunned to learn that the United States is now a “net food importer.” Alarmingly, America’s agricultural trade deficit hit a staggering $39 billion in 2024, the largest in U.S. history. America, once the world’s breadbasket, is now hugely dependent on overseas food producers.

How did this happen?

Over the past 30 years, Washington has pursued “free trade” policies, including the elimination of tariffs, intended to lower consumer prices. This sounded great, in theory. However, the real-world result has been the ongoing dismantlement of America’s domestic beef supply chain and commercial sheep industry.

Under “free trade,” overseas cattle producers enjoy a price advantage. They pay their workers lower wages, and their safety and environmental standards are weaker than those mandated for America’s domestic farmers. As a result, importers make large profits by bringing in cheap meat and produce, leading to lower-quality, potentially unsafe food for U.S. families.

This has successfully eroded America’s domestic ability to meet its food needs. Consider that, since 1980, the U.S. population has grown by roughly 115 million people. In the same time frame, our nation has lost more than 650,000 beef cow farms — over half of all its beef cow farms. The U.S. has also lost 78% of its feedlots and 54% of its federally inspected food plants. The Big Four of meatpackers now control 85% of the fed cattle industry.

In 2024 alone, U.S. beef imports were more than 37% higher than the previous five-year average. Even as Americans buy more beef and lamb, they increasingly get it from cheap global imports, and too much of it is produced under lax standards.

E. coli is a rising problem in beef imports, and the sheer volume of imports means America’s food safety inspectors can examine and test only a small portion of incoming meat products.

This is the sad result of an overly globalized food chain. America urgently needs more cattle and sheep farmers and ranchers. That’s why Mr. Trump’s tariffs on Mexico and Canada are helpful first steps toward incentivizing domestic cattle production. That won’t happen without tariffs because global importers continually replace domestic production with cheaper imports. America’s remaining sheep industry is a perfect example. Imported lamb has now captured 70% of the domestic lamb market, leaving U.S. sheep producers with a mere 30%. Even as Americans consume more lamb, domestic lamb production continues to fall.

Although Mr. Trump’s new tariffs on Canada and Mexico are welcome, much more is needed. In the face of a rising wave of tainted meat imports and the dismantling of America’s domestic cattle and sheep supply chains, Mr. Trump should rapidly implement additional tariffs and quotas on global beef, mutton and lamb imports, including from Australia, New Zealand and South America.

The United States can no longer pretend that its domestic cattle and sheep industries will somehow prosper when importers continually drive down domestic livestock prices. Unfair trade practices have increased food safety concerns and reduced the number of domestic livestock farmers and ranchers.

That’s hardly the means to ensure America’s future food security. The time is now to impose tariffs on global meat imports.

Bill Bullardis the CEO of R-CALF USA, the nation’s largest non-profit trade association exclusively representing the U.S. cattle industry.