Trump’s Rose Garden beef burger menu sparks outrage as high prices mean they are too expensive for many Americans | The Independent (https://www.the-independent.com/manifest.json) (img/shortcut-icons/favicon.ico) (img/shortcut-icons/icon-192x192.png) (img/shortcut-icons/icon-512x512.png) (img/shortcut-icons/icon-192x192.png) (../assets.the-independent.com/fonts/Independent-Serif-Medium.woff2) (../assets.the-independent.com/fonts/Independent-Serif-Medium-Italic.woff2) (https://cdn.taboola.com/) (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-beef-prices-affordability-inflation-b3044266.html) (b3044266.html) (https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-beef-prices-affordability-inflation-b3044266.html) (../assets.the-independent.com/fonts/Independent-Serif-Regular.woff2) (../assets.the-independent.com/fonts/Independent-Serif-Regular-Italic.woff2) (../assets.the-independent.com/fonts/Independent-Serif-Medium.woff2)    Thank you for registering Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in Please refresh your browser to be logged in     (b3044266.html#main-content) Jump to content    Open full menu        US Edition    (https://www.independent.co.uk/?editionSwitcherSource=the-independent.com) UK Edition (https://www.independentespanol.com/?editionSwitcherSource=the-independent.com) Edición en Español          (https://www.the-independent.com/)         (https://www.the-independent.com/login?regSourceMethod=Nav+register+CTA) Log in     (https://www.the-independent.com/login?regSourceMethod=Nav+register+CTA)   Log in          (https://www.the-independent.com/us) News  (https://www.the-independent.com/sport) Sports  (https://www.the-independent.com/arts-entertainment) Culture  (https://www.the-independent.com/life-style) Lifestyle  (https://www.the-independent.com/us/money) Money  (https://www.the-independent.com/us/travel) Travel  (https://www.the-independent.com/independentpremium) Premium  (https://www.the-independent.com/climate-change) Climate  More                                      Swipe for next article        (https://www.the-independent.com/news) News  (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world) World  (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas) Americas  (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics) US politics     Trump’s Rose Garden beef burger menu sparks outrage as high prices mean they are too expensive for many Americans President Donald Trump serves up gourment hamburgers to invited guests as voters priced out of favorite meal  (https://www.the-independent.com/author/joe-sommerlad) Joe Sommerlad   Thursday 03 September 2026 12:28 EDT            Bookmark   (b3044266.html#comments-area)    Comments      Go to comments       Bookmark popover Removed from bookmarks Close popover                Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins won't say which countries U.S. is importing low-cost beef from       Your support helps us to tell the story Read more        (https://www.the-independent.com/donate?regSourceMethod=Donations) Support Now                                From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging. At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story. The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it. Your support makes all the difference.      Read more              President (https://www.the-independent.com/topic/donald-trump) Donald Trump hosted an “End of Summer BBQ” in the White House Rose Garden Wednesday where his guests were served gourmet hamburgers - a choice that has provoked an uproar in light of the ongoing (https://www.the-independent.com/topic/affordability) affordability crisis. Trump’s bash was attended by Cabinet members and Republican lawmakers, who spent a humid evening listening to the president deliver a speech in which he (https://www.the-independent.com/tv/news/trump-wall-street-ozempic-video-b3044104.html) joked about a friend taking Ozempic and attempted to (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-hair-rumors-rally-anecdote-b3043976.html) dispel rumors that he wears a wig .  According to (https://x.com/meredithllee/status/2095295011927601513) the event’s menu , those invited were treated to three courses: heirloom tomato and burrata salad, prime-aged (https://www.the-independent.com/topic/beef) beef burger and frozen strawberry curd.      It was the main course that offended, given that the average retail price of ground beef stands at (https://www.bls.gov/regions/mid-atlantic/data/averageretailfoodandenergyprices_usandmidwest_table.htm) $6.89 per pound , according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a 10 percent rise year-on-year, pricing many working American families out of a favorite meal.  The panelists on CNN’s NewsNight were quick to cite the matter as the latest evidence of Trump behaving in a tone-deaf manner towards the concerns of voters, placing it alongside a (https://edition.cnn.com/2026/07/29/politics/cnn-poll-donald-trump-midterms-polls-iran-war) recent CNN/SSRS poll that found that 73 percent of people consider him to have the wrong priorities.  (President Donald Trump served his guests gourmet beef burgers at the White House ‘End of Summer BBQ,’ an option American families feel is out of their price range) open image in gallery     President Donald Trump served his guests gourmet beef burgers at the White House ‘End of Summer BBQ,’ an option American families feel is out of their price range(AP)    “He’s in the Rose Garden tonight eating fine beef, eating a three-course meal, out on the patio,” MeidasTouch reporter Scott MacFarlane (https://x.com/Acyn/status/2095337344098541665) said .   “Hamburgers cost $6 apiece at the grocery store right now. The box of sugar cereal – which sometimes is dinner – $6 for the box of cereal, $4 for a loaf of bread. It’s not the culture war c***. It’s food can’t be purchased at the levels you need when you have two teenagers.  “They can’t afford college, they can’t afford healthcare. Fertilizer costs too much, which means farmers are struggling, which is why Iowa is in play.”   Trump’s barbecue was also held just a day after his deal allowing (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-beef-import-deal-price-cost-of-living-b3037060.html) 300,000 metric tons of imported beef into the U.S. tax-free for a 90-day period came into effect. The president announced the news on Truth Social last month, saying his administration was dedicated to helping domestic livestock farmers while adding: “We have a commitment that this beef will be sold at 25 percent below current market prices.” (The menu at Trump’s latest bash, promising diners ‘prime-aged beef burger’) open image in gallery     The menu at Trump’s latest bash, promising diners ‘prime-aged beef burger’(Getty)    The move was intended to appeal to conservatives ahead of November’s midterms – who might otherwise complain his administration has (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-poll-economy-approval-rating-inflation-b2982346.html) not done enough to bring down prices – but risked ushering in unwelcome competition for beleaguered ranchers, a point made by several GOP senators representing predominantly rural states.      “Americans want U.S. beef on the table – not foreign imports,” Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso (http://redirect.viglink.com?&key=9ed4af92937c872e0ab792f0310bab4e&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nytimes.com%2F2026%2F08%2F25%2Fus%2Fpolitics%2Frepublicans-trump-beef-imports.html&cuid=b3044266) told The New York Times  .  Republican Montana Sen. Tim Sheehy similarly said he had advised the president against making the move “because American ranchers have been struggling against the packer monopoly for decades, and this will further harm them.” Nebraska Republican Sen. Pete Ricketts likewise (https://x.com/cspan/status/2094958472454373431) said he has told Trump his “short-term solutions” were “not gonna work.” Neither (https://x.com/Acyn/status/2090906781149204930) Trump nor (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-beef-imports-brooke-rollins-b3039094.html) Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins has said where the incoming imported meat originates from and a White House official pressed by The Independent would only say it was from “foreign beef exporters.” (The average retail cost of ground beef currently stands at $6.89 per pound, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics) open image in gallery     The average retail cost of ground beef currently stands at $6.89 per pound, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics(Getty)    Trump has since attempted to soothe the sector’s concerns by other means, pledging to (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-beef-processing-glenn-beck-b3041114.html) allow farmers to process their own beef – after receiving a prompting from conservative pundit Glenn Beck, who warned him that a small number of processing plants held a “monopoly.”   He has meanwhile repeatedly promised that the price of beef will come down (https://x.com/Acyn/status/2090941920663281903) “very rapidly,” a guarantee he was (https://x.com/RpsAgainstTrump/status/1964848177124638755) also making last September . Earlier this summer, the president claimed to be helping meat-eaters by convincing Walmart to lower its beef prices in time for the Fourth of July weekend, only for it to be reported subsequently that the supermarket giant (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-walmart-beef-white-house-b3012769.html) already had a special offer in place before he seized upon it.    More about (https://www.the-independent.com/topic/donald-trump) Donald Trump (https://www.the-independent.com/topic/beef) Beef (https://www.the-independent.com/topic/farmers) farmers (https://www.the-independent.com/topic/affordability) affordability (https://www.the-independent.com/topic/agriculture) Agriculture     Join our commenting forum Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies (b3044266.html#comments-area)  Comments                          Most popular          Popular videos       Bulletin                      Read next                   (https://www.the-independent.com/)    (https://www.the-independent.com/) Get in touch (https://www.the-independent.com/service/contact-us-759589.html) Contact us   (https://www.facebook.com/TheIndependentOnline)    (https://twitter.com/Independent)       (https://www.the-independent.com/) Our Products (https://www.the-independent.com/register?itm_channel=native&itm_campaign=footer&itm_content=register&regSourceMethod=Footer+register+CTA) Register  (https://www.the-independent.com/newsletters?itm_channel=native&itm_campaign=footer&itm_audience=prospecting&itm_content=newsletters) Newsletters  (https://www.the-independent.com/donate?itm_channel=native&itm_campaign=footer&itm_audience=prospecting&itm_content=donate) Donate  (https://edition.independent.co.uk/) Today’s Edition  (https://www.the-independent.com/subscribe/app?itm_channel=native&itm_campaign=app_selling_page&itm_audience=prospecting&itm_content=footer) Install our app  (https://www.the-independent.com/archive) Archive    (https://www.the-independent.com/) Other publications (https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/journalism-license-srmg-middle-east-news-world-global-a9579111.html) International editions  (https://www.independentespanol.com/) Independent en Español  (https://www.independentarabia.com/) Independent Arabia  (https://www.indyturk.com/) Independent Turkish  (https://www.independentpersian.com/) Independent Persian  (https://www.independenturdu.com/) Independent Urdu  (https://www.standard.co.uk/) The Standard    (https://www.the-independent.com/) Extras (https://puzzles.independent.co.uk/) Puzzles  (https://www.the-independent.com/topics-list) All topics  (https://www.the-independent.com/sport/betting-sign-up-offers-and-free-bets-b2581138.html) Free bets offers  (https://www.the-independent.com/deals) Latest deals  (https://www.the-independent.com/competitions) Competitions and offers  (https://www.independentadvertising.com/) Independent Advertising  (https://www.the-independent.com/ignite) Independent Ignite  (https://www.independentadvertising.com/licensing-and-syndication/) Syndication  (https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-independent/jobs/) Working at The Independent    (https://www.the-independent.com/) Legal (https://www.the-independent.com/service/code-of-conduct-a6184241.html) Code of conduct and complaints  (https://www.the-independent.com/service/external-contributors-policy-7905982.html) Contributors  (https://www.the-independent.com/service/cookie-policy-a6184186.html) Cookie policy  (https://www.the-independent.com/service/contributions-terms-and-conditions-a9308071.html) Donations Terms & Conditions  (https://www.the-independent.com/service/privacy-notice-a6184181.html) Privacy policy    (https://www.the-independent.com/service/user-policies-a6184151.html) User policies  (https://static.independent.co.uk/static-assets/IND-Modern-Slavery-Statement-2024.pdf) Modern Slavery Statement            Thank you for registering Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in Please refresh your browser to be logged in                                                  (Google Tag Manager - No Script)