Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Friday urged Americans facing higher beef prices to consider liver and other "cheap cuts" instead of pricier steaks.
The remarks landed amid a broader Trump administration push to reshape federal nutrition guidance and as beef costs remained near record levels.
Kennedy made the comments at an event hosted by MAHA Action, a political action committee dedicated to supporting the "Make America Health Again" agenda.
"This is true all over the country. There's a lot of good food in grocery stores that goes away. Most of the cheap cuts of meat are very inexpensive," Kennedy said.
"If you buy, you know, a porterhouse steak, it's going to, it is going to take you back [a few dollars]," he said. "You can buy liver or the cheaper cuts of steak that are very, very affordable."
Government consumer price data shows the average U.S. city price for a pound of ground beef rose from $5.55 in January 2025 to $6.75 in January 2026.
That is an increase of $1.20 per pound, or about 21.8%.
Beef liver is not a common staple for many U.S. shoppers.
The Beef Checkoff, a marketing and research program, has said there is "very minimal demand" in the United States for beef variety meats such as liver, tongue, heart, kidney, stomach and intestine, while international consumers account for much of the demand for those products.
The administration has also highlighted new federal dietary guidance.
HHS and the Agriculture Department released the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025-2030 on Jan. 7, and federal nutrition officials describe the core message as "Eat real food," emphasizing whole foods and limiting highly processed foods, added sugars, and refined carbohydrates.
Earlier this month, the Trump administration struck a deal to allow an additional 80,000 metric tons of lean beef trimmings from Argentina to enter the U.S. market under tariff-rate quota changes, framing it as a step to ease ground beef costs.
The move drew opposition from groups representing U.S. cattle ranchers and from some Republican lawmakers.
The National Cattlemen's Beef Association CEO Colin Woodall said the organization had "numerous concerns" and that "This plan only creates chaos at a critical time of the year for American cattle producers, while doing nothing to lower grocery store prices."
Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Neb., criticized the approach, saying, "Instead of imports that sideline American ranchers, we should be focused on solutions that cut red tape, lower production costs, and support growing our cattle herd."
In contrast, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said, "We're paying close attention to it, and we've been in touch with the White House, Department of Agriculture, U.S. trade rep on all this stuff, trying to figure out where it's headed."
Reuters contributed to this report.
Jim Thomas ✉
Jim Thomas is a writer based in Indiana. He holds a bachelor's degree in Political Science, a law degree from U.I.C. Law School, and has practiced law for more than 20 years.
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