President Trump says Argentinian cattle could help solve America’s record high beef prices, which are far outpacing overall food price increases owing to a series of headwinds facing the nation’s cattle ranchers. 

America’s cattle herd reached a 75-year low earlier this year after a drought and a ban on importation of Mexican cows. As a result, beef prices hit an average $6.31 per pound in August.

“The only price we have that is high is beef and we’ll get that down,” Mr. Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday. “And one of the things we’re thinking of doing is beef from Argentina.”

The nod to Argentina comes after Mr. Trump offered its president, Javier Milei, a close Trump ally, a $20 billion bailout for his Latin American nation. Some American soybean farmers have been critical of the bailout since China has turned to Argentina to buy soybeans as a result of its trade war with the United States. 

The latest hit to American ranchers is the potentially deadly New World Screwworm, which the Trump administration has declared a “national security threat,” leading to a ban on the importation of Mexican feeder cattle. More than 7,885 cows in Mexico have tested positive for the flesh-eating screwworm, with 838 cases since October 2, according to America’s secretary of agriculture, Brooke Rollins. Ms. Rollins said on Monday that no new cases have been detected in the last seven days in the Mexican states bordering the United States. 

In addition to the parasite, the United States Cattlemen’s Association says ranchers are facing historically high costs for feed, fuel, labor, and land. However, the association says Argentinian cattle has a history of foot-and-mouth disease, which could decimate domestic livestock production, and contended that the marketplace is the best way to level out retail beef prices, which have remained steady relative to Americans’ earnings over the past four decades. 

“NCBA’s family farmers and ranchers have numerous concerns with importing more Argentinian beef to lower prices for consumers. This plan only creates chaos at a critical time of the year for American cattle producers, while doing nothing to lower grocery store prices,” said the group’s CEO, Colin Woodall.

Argentine beef exports to the United States are projected to reach a record 860,000 tons in 2025 but remain under 10 percent of the American beef market. The cattlemen’s group noted a deep trade imbalance on beef, with Argentina selling more than $801 million worth of beef to the U.S. market in the last five years compared to $7 million worth of American beef sold to Argentina during that time.

Mr. Trump didn’t specify how much additional beef might be imported from Argentina.

“We’re not talking about that much,” Mr. Trump said.