Colorado’s agricultural industry could face a multimillion-dollar hit because of tariffs, and now the state’s ranchers are concerned that a move to import more beef from Argentina could heighten the economic threats.
A state report released in September said the initial impact of tariffs on the beef industry could result in a drop of nearly $39 million in revenue the first half of the year compared to 2024; 265 fewer direct and indirect jobs; and a decline of $80 million in economic output in Colorado.
The administration, dealing with growing questions about the effect of its trade policies on agriculture, announced Wednesday that it will reopen 2,100 U.S. Department of Agriculture offices despite the government shutdown to help farmers access $3 billion from existing programs.
The decision follows President Donald Trump’s suggestion this week to import beef from Argentina to lower high beef prices for U.S. consumers. The idea is creating further angst in the charged economic and political climate and is drawing flack from farm organizations, among his strongest supporters, and some farm-state Republican members of Congress.
Trump defended his plan Wednesday. He said U.S. ranchers are doing well because he has put tariffs on beef imports.
Chad Franke, president of the Rocky Mountain Farmers Union, doesn’t support the proposal. “It’s not good for American beef producers. For the last five years at least, American beef producers have made little to no money,”
But ranchers in Colorado and nationwide have started to make what Franke called fair returns as beef prices have risen. Drought and other factors have contributed to smaller herd numbers, driving up beef’s value.
Importing more beef from Argentina will affect U.S. ranchers, but likely won’t make much of a dent in prices at the grocery store, Franke said. He said the beef, which would be frozen, is leaner and would likely be mixed with domestically produced ground beef.
Beef is Colorado’s top agricultural export and made up the bulk of the industry’s total exports of $2.7 billion in 2024. Other key exports are dairy, wheat, vegetables and feed grain.
Overall, agriculture generates roughly $47 billion for the Colorado economy.
Derrell Peel, a professor of agricultural economics at Oklahoma State University, told the Oklahoma Farm Report earlier this week that about 2.1% of the total U.S. beef imports have come from Argentina this year. He doesn’t believe that increased imports would significantly affect U.S. beef prices.
But bringing more Argentine beef to the U.S. will cause “chaos and confusion” in the domestic beef markets and undercut cattle producers, state Sen. Dylan Roberts, a Frisco Democrat, and state Rep. Karen McCormick, a Longmont Democrat, said in a statement Tuesday.
They head the agriculture and natural resources committees in their respective chambers.
The Colorado Cattlemen’s Association urged the Trump administration to not intervene in the domestic beef market.
“While beef prices have risen, consumer demand for U.S. beef remains strong, thanks to the dedication of American cattlemen and women who have consistently delivered safe, high-quality products,” the group said on its Facebook page.
‘It’s been all over the board’
Ranchers in Colorado and across the country aren’t just concerned about the economic fallout of increasing imports from Argentina, said Amanda Countryman, an agricultural and resource economics professor at Colorado State University.
“There are also real concerts about food safety, quality and also animal health concerns,” Countryman said. “The health and safety standards are different in Argentina than they are in the U.S.”
There is a history of foot and mouth disease, a viral illness, among cattle in Argentina, Countryman added.
To lower beef prices in the U.S., the country’s cattle numbers will have to increase, Countryman said. “The U.S. is such a large beef consumer, and we’re so heavily dependent on domestic production, that we’re going to have to have a domestic supply response. It will take time.”
Countryman said beef prices rose by 14% from 2024 to 2025. Beef prices have been on the rise the past few years because of low cattle numbers, The Associated Press reported.
Colorado’s herd size of 2.5 million Jan. 1, 2025, tied with 2014 and 2015 for the state’s third-lowest total number over the past 50 years, said Rodger Ott,regional director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service.
Among the drivers behind smaller herds are the availability of food in the drought-stricken West and the cost of feed, Countryman said. Farmers and ranchers have also been battling low commodity prices and higher prices for equipment and supplies, including fertilizer. Countryman said global fertilizer prices are 15% higher than they were in 2024.
Much of the fertilizer used in the U.S. comes from Canada.
Equipment, parts and repairs have increased, said Franke of the Rocky Mountain Farmers. One example is the price of tires for tractors. Tires for a certain type of tractor were about $1,500 apiece 10 years ago.
“Now, some of them are $5,000 per tire,” Franke said.
What’s difficult is sorting out whether tariffs, inflation or a mix of factors are boosting costs, Franke said. Because it’s not a big soybean producing state, Colorado doesn’t face the current problems of China’s clampdown on buying U.S. soybeans as part of the ongoing trade war.
But Franke figures the higher import taxes on various products will ripple through the agriculture economy for a while. And an immediate effect of the administration’s policies has been the uncertainty. Franke said producers have to make long-term decisions about which crops to plant and whether to expand sheep and cattle herds, but tariffs and the threat of countries imposing retaliatory duties add a new layer of complexity.
“It’s been all over the board. We don’t not support tariffs, but they need to be done in a thoughtful and methodical way,” Franke said.
On top of trade issues, the agricultural community has dealt with the freezing of federal money for various programs. Franke said some people paid for work or items and then were left on the hook. Banks got nervous when people didn’t have the funds when anticipated.
The funds are flowing again.
“But cash flow makes as big of a difference as profit and loss in a small business,” Franke said. “If you don’t have cash on hand when you need it, it doesn’t matter if you’re profitable or not. If you can’t pay your bills, you’re not going to continue.”
Franke and Colorado State Treasurer Dave Young were among the speakers in a recent call with reporters on how tariffs are affecting agriculture in the region. Young said higher costs paid by farmers and ranchers and the uncertainty they’re experiencing reverberate across communities.
“It’s time to restore stability to our trade relationships and ensure that policies support, not punish, the hard-working families who feed our nation,” Young said.