Overview
- Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said an update could come within one to two days and stressed any purchases would be small relative to U.S. consumption.
- Rollins asserted Argentina faces a foot-and-mouth disease problem, a characterization rejected by Argentine authorities and the OIE/OMSA, which recognizes the country’s free status.
- Multiple reports cite a draft plan to lift the zero-tariff quota from 20,000 tonnes to roughly 60,000–70,000 tonnes with a 10% tariff on volumes above the quota, though no agreement has been announced.
- Sources say U.S. and Argentine teams are drafting sanitary and traceability protocols that would govern any expansion.
- U.S. rancher groups and Republican Sen. Deb Fischer criticized the idea, arguing increased imports would harm producers and do little to lower retail prices.