President Donald Trump in an executive order published Saturday directed officials to create two task forces to investigate whether anti-competitive behavior like price fixing in food supply chains is contributing to higher costs.
The executive order directs both the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission to each stand up a “Food Supply Chain Security Task Force.” As well as anti-competitive behavior, the probe will examine whether foreign companies’ participation in supply chains of food-related industries poses national security risks, the executive order says.
The task forces have 180 days to look into each issue and brief congressional leaders and committees on their progress, with another briefing due a year after the order.
“The Attorney General and the Chairman of the Federal Trade Commission shall take such actions as are necessary to remedy any anti-competitive behavior that their respective investigations uncover, including bringing enforcement actions and proposing new regulatory approaches,” the executive order reads.
The president added that if the DOJ task force finds evidence of “criminal collusion,” it should pursue criminal proceedings.
“An affordable and secure food supply is vital to America's national and economic security,” the executive order argues, noting that several food companies have settled lawsuits accusing them of price fixing in recent years. “Food supply sectors including meat processing, seed, fertilizer, and equipment have similar vulnerabilities to price fixing and other anti-competitive practices,” the president notes.
The executive order comes just weeks after the president railed against foreign-owned meat packers in a social media post in which he accused companies of artificially inflating prices and posing risks to U.S. food security.
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“Action must be taken immediately to protect Consumers, combat Illegal Monopolies, and ensure these Corporations are not criminally profiting at the expense of the American People,” he wrote at the time.
The creation of the new task forces is the latest move from an administration that has taken a keen interest in the role of foreign, particularly Chinese, companies in U.S. food supply chains.
In July, officials unveiled a “National Farm Security Action Plan” that sought to “claw back” U.S. farmland owned by Chinese-owned companies and set new restrictions on USDA research and partnerships with Chinese scientists and entities.
Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins was also added to a committee that screens business transactions and inbound investments for national security implications.
In recent months, the issue of food affordability has also taken on greater importance for Trump and senior administration officials – even when it clashes with other administration priorities.
In October, Trump sparred with U.S. ranchers over a proposal to increase Argentinian beef imports, ostensibly to reduce beef prices for consumers. Last month, he also exempted a raft of U.S. food imports from recent tariffs, with Democrats branding the carveout as a tacit admission that Trump’s trade policy has contributed to higher food prices.
The Biden administration had also promised action against anticompetitive behavior in the food industry, and while campaigning for president in 2024 then-Vice President Kamala Harris proposed a ban on price gouging.
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