LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Federal investigators will look into why the price of beef in stores has gone up while the price of cattle has gone down.
Politco first reported the investigation, which will target the country's four major meat producers, JBS, Tyson Foods, Cargill and National Beef.
“Our beef cattle producers have seen 30 and 40% price drops since the start of the pandemic, even while the price of beef products at the grocery store has increased," said Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner Ryan Quarles.
Quarles and Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron joined other states that called on the Department of Justice to investigate.
"We know that even the short term shutdown of a processing plant will cause the markets to get out of whack. We're very understanding of that," Quarles said. "However, this is an issue that existed long before COVID."
The price of fresh beef has gone up nearly 25 cents per pound since the beginning of the pandemic. Meanwhile, the price paid per head of cattle has gone down significantly.
"Kentucky is the biggest beef cattle state east of the Mississippi but yet almost all of our cattle are processed in the Midwest," Quarles said. "Four companies comprised 85% of the beef processing capacity in the U.S."
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