Brace yourself: beef prices in the U.S. are hitting wallets hard.
According to CBS News, driven by shrinking cattle supplies, relentless drought, and surging demand, the cost of beef has soared to a record $5.98 per pound as of May 2025, with no relief in sight.
Let’s rewind a bit. Over the past decade, ground beef prices have jumped 45%, far outpacing the broader Consumer Price Index rise of about 30%.
Meanwhile, overall food costs have climbed nearly 17% since 2022. A $100 grocery bill back then would set you back roughly $116.85 today.
The root of this price spike? "Demand is outstripping supply", hammering everyone from meat processors to restaurant owners to everyday consumers.
Cattle numbers tell a grim story. The U.S. herd in 2025 stands at just 27.8 million, the lowest since the 1960s, even as the population grows.
What’s behind this collapse in supply? A brutal drought, starting in 2021 and dragging through 2024, crushed the western U.S. and key beef-producing regions.
Ranchers had no choice but to liquidate their herds. As Derrell Peel, a professor at Oklahoma State University, noted, “They simply had no choice because of the drought.”
Peel added, “Somewhere during that period, just about every major beef cow-producing area was subject to drought and subject to this sort of forced liquidation.”
Rebuilding isn’t a quick fix. Cows produce only one calf at a time and take longer to reach slaughter age than other livestock.
Other pressures pile on, too. High grain costs, tariffs, and rising interest rates are fueling the price surge, per a June 2025 NerdWallet study.
Demand, though, refuses to budge. Peel observed, “There's plenty of alternative protein sources... that are in abundant supply and relatively cheaper. And yet beef demand has stayed remarkably robust.”
Restaurants are caught in the crossfire. Andrew Schnipper of Hamburger America in New York City lamented, “Anybody should be able to afford a burger.”
Schnipper added, “We're very focused on trying to charge the least amount we feel comfortable doing. But obviously, if prices go up we have to raise prices.”
Looking ahead, the forecast is bleak. The U.S. Department of Agriculture predicts beef prices will hit new highs in 2026, with tight supplies and elevated costs likely persisting through the decade. As Peel warned, “We're going to be in a tight supply situation... probably to the rest of the decade.”