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Gas prices aren’t the only item inflicting financial strain on Americans ahead of Memorial Day. For families firing up the grill, that ground beef will have a higher price tag attached to it.
The national average for a pound of ground beef stands at a record high of $6.90, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Lower cattle supply coupled with robust demand caused prices to skyrocket over the past five years. Since President Donald Trump took office in January 2025, ground beef prices have climbed by 24%.
That creates a political challenge as beef remains central to the American diet.The Trump administration has struggled to tame price increases in beef, a staple of the American diet. The U.S. government is encouraging Americans to become more like carnivores: Beef is now on top of the food pyramid following an overhaul of federal dietary guidelines at the Department of Health and Human Services. Even Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has said he eats beef “twice a day.”
