Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins urged Americans worried about high beef prices to consider changing their diets.

She made the remark during a Monday interview with right-wing political commentator Benny Johnson, who raised concerns about cost-of-living issues.

“I know that [President Donald Trump] called you about the price of a Big Mac; I know he called you about American beef,” Johnson said. “So let’s talk about that. What are we gonna do with American beef? Nobody likes these expensive steaks.”

“Number one, beef is lower by five percent, so we are trending in the right direction,” Rollins responded.

The average price of uncooked ground beef stood at $7.16 per pound in August, up from $6.63 a year earlier, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Rollins, who took office in 2025, also blamed former President Joe Biden and Democrats for what she described as efforts to limit domestic beef production.

“I could spend an hour talking about this,” she told Johnson. “Beef went up almost 30 percent under Joe Biden. Of course, the Democrats, the leftist agenda to destroy our cattle herds, take them off of our grazing lands, basically say they’re responsible for climate change.”

Amid constrictions on supply, demand for beef is also at a record high, she said. She highlighted a new food pyramid promoted by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. that places red meat at the top.

“We have more people eating beef than ever before, but if it is too expensive … you can eat chicken, pork, salmon, eggs,” Rollins said. “There are other sources of really good protein, and all of those prices are coming down as well.”

“We realize the price of groceries are too high and we’re doing everything we can to bring them down,” she added.

Trump himself has publicly recognized the beef prices are too high. Last month, he declared that the administration would permit up to 331,000 tons of duty-free ground beef imports into the U.S. over the next 90 days to be sold under market rates.

Affordability has become a major concern for voters ahead of the November midterm elections, according to polling. Gas prices, which have risen sharply amid the war with Iran, have also emerged as a particular source of anxiety.

In a new Reuters survey, just 17 percent of respondents said they approved of Trump’s handling of cost-of-living issues.