2026-06-06 10:00:01 UTC / 路透社
美国对墨西哥活牛边境禁令威胁到拥有70年历史的德克萨斯州一家育肥场的生存，而利润则回流至墨西哥
2026年6月6日 美国东部时间上午10:00 更新于10分钟前
2026年6月2日，一架无人机拍摄到墨西哥卡斯塔诺斯牧场里的牛群。在美国华盛顿停止跨境活牛运输后，美国生产商面临牛群缩减和市场压力，墨西哥牛肉出口正持续增长。路透社/丹尼尔·贝塞里尔
自德怀特·艾森豪威尔担任美国总统以来，拉伯克育肥场一直在德克萨斯州西部育肥牛。如今，一排排牛舍空空如也。
该育肥场的一位所有者表示，这家位于德克萨斯州拉伯克的70年历史育肥场正濒临关闭。去年美国暂停从墨西哥进口牲畜后，原本占该场养殖牛群绝大多数的供应来源枯竭。
2026年4月22日，美国德克萨斯州拉伯克，凯尔·威廉姆斯走在拉伯克育肥场内，场内正在配制由玉米、干草、肥料和其他营养成分组成的定制饲料。路透社/安妮·赖斯
2026年4月22日，美国德克萨斯州拉伯克，拉伯克育肥场占地350英亩的育肥牛舍。路透社/安妮·赖斯
2026年4月22日，美国德克萨斯州拉伯克，凯尔·威廉姆斯坐在他在拉伯克育肥场的办公桌前。他已经在这家育肥场工作了26年，如今由于牛肉供应链问题，该场濒临关闭。路透社/安妮·赖斯
一年前，美国政府关闭了墨西哥活牛入境边境，以期抵御新大陆牛皮蝇蛆病——一种墨西哥当局一直难以控制的食肉害虫。本周，德克萨斯州一个养牛场确认出现60年来首例牛皮蝇蛆病病例，这给本已受困于供应短缺、唐纳德·特朗普总统的贸易政策以及严重干旱的美国牛肉业带来了新的挑战。
墨西哥北部边境州科阿韦拉州的情况则更为乐观。此前向美国出口活牛的当地养殖户如今正将牛肉出口至美国。牧场主恩里克·加西亚的牛舍里最近挤满了等待下午喂食的黑色肉牛。他已经将员工人数增加了一倍，其中包括负责育肥牛和加工牛肉的人员，他的目标是将产品销往美国消费者手中。
作为美国最大的养牛州，德克萨斯州因边境关闭导致规模达1000亿美元的美国牛肉业收缩。但在墨西哥——该国牛皮蝇蛆病已感染近2.8万头牲畜——牛肉业却利用这一挫折发展壮大：他们扩建了自己的育肥场，延长牛只饲养周期并为屠宰做准备，同时扩大了加工设施。向供应链上游升级此举有利可图。2026年前四个月，墨西哥对美国的牛肉出口大幅增长。
2026年6月2日，墨西哥萨尔蒂略，一名工人在屠宰厂处理肉块。在美国华盛顿停止跨境活牛运输后，美国生产商面临牛群缩减和市场压力，墨西哥牛肉出口正持续增长。路透社/丹尼尔·贝塞里尔
“如果他们最终在墨西哥完成育肥和加工，我们怎么能算得上赢家？”拉伯克育肥场经理兼部分所有者凯尔·威廉姆斯说道。“我们把育肥行业的机会拱手让人了。这些工作岗位、这些劳动力，美国本地人都没法获得。”
2026年4月22日，美国德克萨斯州拉伯克，拉伯克育肥场鲍比·斯威夫特办公室里的地图上别着一枚牛形别针。路透社/安妮·赖斯
美国牛群缩减
由于对墨西哥活牛进口禁令以及平原地区干旱引发野火、美国生产商削减牛群，国内牛肉供应降至75年来最低水平，今年美国牛肉价格创下历史新高。
根据行业数据，美国此前每年从墨西哥进口超过100万头活牛，约占美国牛肉生产所用牛只总量的4%至5%。
这些来自墨西哥的活牛会在美国育肥场育肥，随后被送往美国加工厂，沿途带动了众多就业岗位，育肥场经营者表示。这些岗位包括运输牲畜的卡车司机、种植饲料作物的农民以及将牛只加工成牛排和汉堡肉的肉类加工厂工人。
2026年6月1日，一架无人机拍摄到墨西哥萨尔蒂略育肥场内进食的牛群。尽管华盛顿禁止活牛北运，墨西哥仍扩大了对美国的牛肉出口。路透社/丹尼尔·贝塞里尔
2026年6月2日，墨西哥萨尔蒂略，一名工人在屠宰厂向肉块喷水。自从华盛顿关闭活牛入境边境以阻止牛皮蝇蛆病传播以来，墨西哥已扩建了肉类加工设施。路透社/丹尼尔·贝塞里尔
如今，这些活牛大多留在墨西哥国内饲养和屠宰。
“他们正在墨西哥建设基础设施，”威廉姆斯说。“他们被迫自行解决问题。”
他补充道，美国农业部可以通过在入境口岸对活牛进行检查和处理来安全恢复进口。“相关协议已经到位，边境两侧都开展了培训。让活牛正常流通吧。”
牛皮蝇蛆病是一种寄生性苍蝇，雌蝇会在伤口产卵，可感染所有温血动物。若及早发现，该病可以治疗。在20世纪的一次疫情中，美国从位于德克萨斯州的苍蝇生产厂投放了数万亿只不育苍蝇来防控热点区域，如今该国正试图重启这家工厂。美国农业部长布鲁克·罗林斯去年在为对墨西哥边境关闭辩护时表示，这场大规模的灭虫行动终结了疫情，但养牛业花了30年才恢复元气。
罗林斯本周表示，暂停活牛运输可以减缓该害虫的传播。
威廉姆斯表示，拉伯克育肥场几个月前就停止引进活牛了，因为从美国牧场采购活牛的高昂价格意味着每头牲畜可能会亏损200多美元。该育肥场最多可容纳4万头肉牛，但目前存栏量仅约4000头。
该育肥场57岁的助理经理鲍比·斯威夫特现在上班时间变晚了，因为几乎没有工作可做。他说，原本检查牛群的工作现在只需要22分钟，因为存栏牛太少了。
2026年4月22日，美国德克萨斯州拉伯克，鲍比·斯威夫特坐在他在拉伯克育肥场的办公室里。他从1988年开始就在这家育肥场工作，如今由于牛肉供应链问题，该场濒临关闭。路透社/安妮·赖斯
“当业务像我们这样冷清时，精神上会受到影响，”斯威夫特说道。他已经在这里工作了30年，他的父亲和祖父也曾在拉伯克育肥场工作。
恢复牛群速度缓慢
随着美国中期选举临近，牛肉价格上涨已成为消费者面临的负担能力问题，与此同时消费者还要应对燃油成本上涨。唐纳德·特朗普总统试图通过敦促养牛生产商降价、下令司法部调查肉类加工厂以及允许从阿根廷低关税进口牛肉来解决这一问题。但更能压低价格的办法是扩大美国牛群规模。
美国肉类加工厂正等待美国养牛生产商扩大牛群规模以增加牛肉产量，这一过程可能需要两年时间。
生产商表示，特朗普推动从阿根廷进口更多低关税牛肉的举措，让他们更难说服养殖户恢复牛群规模。此举激怒了牧场主，但未能降低消费者的成本。
由于干旱天气带来的风险和未来利润的不确定性，生产商也不愿增加产量。
在拉伯克以北74英里（119公里）的德克萨斯州图利亚，农场主埃迪·沃马克表示，除非今年夏天降雨缓解严重干旱，让他重新获得饲料作物，否则他可能会将牛群从约600头削减至200头。他不得不以更高的成本购买饲料。
“如果再经历一场毁灭性的年份，我们就只能说，‘我们撑不住了。我们得卖掉牛群，’”63岁的沃马克说道。
墨西哥生产商获利
加西亚是众多在墨西哥扩张的牛肉生产商之一。
四年前，他开始小规模育肥牛，以实现业务多元化，此前他每年向堪萨斯州出口约900头活牛。美国边境关闭加速了他的转型，帮助他的收入增长了8%至10%，加西亚说道。
共11张图片中的第1张 2026年6月2日，墨西哥卡斯塔诺斯，一架无人机拍摄到牧场里的牛群。在美国华盛顿停止跨境活牛运输后，美国生产商面临牛群缩减和市场压力，墨西哥牛肉出口正持续增长。路透社/丹尼尔·贝塞里尔
[1/11]2026年6月2日，墨西哥卡斯塔诺斯，一架无人机拍摄到牧场里的牛群。在美国华盛顿停止跨境活牛运输后，美国生产商面临牛群缩减和市场压力，墨西哥牛肉出口正持续增长。路透社/丹尼尔·贝塞里尔
如今美国境内也出现了牛皮蝇蛆病，边境短期内不太可能重新开放，加西亚本周表示，这一情况正鼓励他扩大牛肉生产业务。
“最终我们还是能进入美国市场，只不过现在是以牛肉的形式，”他说道。
根据墨西哥主要肉类生产商协会的数据，2026年前四个月墨西哥对美国的出口激增23%，该协会的目标是明年将出口量翻倍。
科阿韦拉州是墨西哥主要牛肉出口州之一，该州畜牧和农村基础设施副部长伊赛亚斯·蒙特马约尔表示，在墨西哥政府的帮助下，该州正推动扩大联邦和美国认证的屠宰和包装产能以支持出口。
“几个月来的情况让我们明白，如果这些生产商提升产品附加值，”蒙特马约尔说道，“他们能获得的利润将与出口活牛相当，甚至更高。”
罗林斯表示，暂停墨西哥活牛进口成功延缓了牛皮蝇蛆病入侵美国，在另行通知之前，入境口岸将继续对墨西哥活牛关闭。
白宫将问题转交至美国农业部，该部在一份声明中表示：“联邦、州和地方各级的工作重点一直是遏制该害虫并实施相关协议。”
我们再经历一场毁灭性的年份，就只能说，“我们撑不住了。我们得卖掉牛群。”
埃迪·沃马克
墨西哥全国畜牧组织联合会的罗赫略·佩雷斯表示，边境关闭迫使墨西哥行业做出调整，最终反而加强了该行业。“现在生产肉类的利润留在了墨西哥，这对美国行业造成了相应的冲击，”他说道。
肉类加工厂压力巨大
除部分养牛育肥场外，边境关闭还加剧了本已紧张的国内供应，给美国肉类加工厂带来了压力。泰森食品等加工商报告称，美国牛肉业务出现巨额亏损，因为活牛成本涨幅超过了牛肉价格涨幅。
美国肉类加工厂高管表示，他们需要更多活牛才能高效运营工厂，恢复从墨西哥的进口将在未来12至18个月内对供应产生最大影响。
2026年1月16日，美国内布拉斯加州列克星敦，西尔维娜·罗德里格斯在泰森食品肉类加工厂工作了十多年后，在该厂当月晚些时候永久关停前的最后一班班次结束时与同事拥抱。路透社/卡洛斯·巴里利亚/资料图片
泰森食品今年削减了位于德克萨斯州阿马里洛——拉伯克以北约195公里（120英里）——一家牛肉加工厂的运营，并永久关闭了内布拉斯加州一家大型牛肉加工厂。该公司表示，这些削减措施——导致数千工人失业——是为了提升竞争力。
其竞争对手JBS和嘉吉在美国牛肉加工厂遭遇了罕见的劳工纠纷，工人要求加薪，两家公司对此进行了抵制。
全球肉类分销商PMI食品总裁达林·帕克表示，美国农业部应该重新开放边境。
“从事牛肉行业是典型的美国精神，”帕克说道。“我们真的需要保护这个行业。”
Screwworm border closure fuels beef boom in Mexico, gloom in Texas
2026-06-06 10:00:01 UTC / Reuters
Closing the border to Mexican cattle threatens the survival of a 70-year-old Texas feedlot, and pushes profits back to Mexico
June 6, 2026 10:00 AM UTC Updated 10 mins ago
A drone view shows cattle in a pasture in Castanos, Mexico, June 2, 2026. Mexico’s beef exports are growing as U.S. producers face shrinking herds and market pressure following Washington’s halt to cross-border cattle shipments. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril
Lubbock Feeders has been fattening cattle in West Texas since Dwight Eisenhower was U.S. president. Now, row upon row of pens sit empty.
The 70-year-old feedlot in Lubbock, Texas, is on the brink of closure after a halt to U.S. imports of Mexican livestock last year dried up the supply that formerly accounted for most of the cattle it raised, according to one of its owners.
Kyle Williams walks inside the feedlot, where customised feed consisting of corn, hay, fertiliser and other nutrients is prepared, at Lubbock Feeders in Lubbock, Texas, U.S., April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Annie Rice
Lubbock Feeders has 350 acres of feedyard pens in Lubbock, Texas, U.S., April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Annie Rice
Kyle Williams sits at his desk at Lubbock Feeders, a feedlot he has worked at for 26 years and that is now on the brink of closure due to beef supply chain issues, in Lubbock, Texas, U.S., April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Annie Rice
The U.S. government closed the border to Mexican livestock a year ago, hoping to keep out New World screwworm, a flesh-eating pest that Mexican authorities have struggled to control. This week, the first case of screwworm in 60 years was confirmed on a Texas cattle ranch, representing a fresh challenge to the U.S. beef industry, already hampered by scarce supplies, President Donald Trump’s trade policies and a pernicious drought.
It’s a brighter story in Mexico’s northern border state of Coahuila, where farmers who used to send live cattle north are now exporting beef to the United States. Rancher Enrique García’s pens were recently full of black cattle eagerly awaiting an afternoon feeding. He has doubled his workforce, including to fatten cattle and process beef, with aspirations to sell his product to U.S. consumers.
In Texas, the nation’s biggest cattle-producing state, closing the border has forced the $100 billion U.S. beef industry to contract. But in Mexico – where screwworm has infested nearly 28,000 animals – the beef industry has capitalized on the setback to build up its own feedlots to keep cows longer and prepare them for slaughter, as well as expand processing facilities. Moving up the supply chain like this can be profitable. In the first four months of 2026, Mexican beef exports to the U.S. soared.
A worker handles pieces of meat at a slaughterhouse, while Mexico’s beef exports grow as U.S. producers face shrinking herds and market pressure following Washington’s halt to cross-border cattle shipments, in Saltillo, Mexico, June 2, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril
“If they end up feeding and processing them in Mexico, how are we winning?” said Kyle Williams, manager and part owner of Lubbock Feeders. “We’re giving this to them on a silver platter, the feeding industry. That’s work, that’s labor, that’s people that are not getting to do it here in the U.S.”
A cow shaped pin on a map in Bobby Swift’s office at Lubbock Feeders in Lubbock, Texas, U.S., April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Annie Rice
U.S. CATTLE HERD SHRINKS
U.S. beef prices set record highs this year as domestic cattle supplies dropped to a 75-year low because of the ban on cattle imports from Mexico and drought conditions that fueled wildfires across the Plains and drove American producers to slash their herds.
The U.S. formerly imported more than a million cattle a year from Mexico, representing about 4% to 5% of all cattle sold for U.S. beef production, according to industry data.
The animals from Mexico were fattened at U.S. feedlots and then sent to U.S. processing plants, supporting jobs along the way, feeders said. The jobs included truckers who transported livestock, farmers who raised crops to feed the animals, and meatpacking workers who butchered cattle into steaks and hamburger meat.
A drone view shows cattle eating at a feedlot in Saltillo, Mexico, June 1, 2026. Mexico has raised its beef exports to the United States despite a ban on moving live cattle moving north. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril
A worker sprays water on a piece of meat at a slaughterhouse in Saltillo, Mexico, June 2, 2026. Mexico has expanded its meat processing facilities since Washington closed the border to live cattle in an effort to stop the spread of screwworms. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril
Now, those cattle are largely staying in Mexico to be raised and slaughtered.
“They’re building infrastructure in Mexico,” Williams said. “They’re forced to figure it out.”
The USDA could resume imports safely with cattle inspections and treatments at ports of entry, he added. “Those protocols are in place. There’s been training on both sides of the border. Let the cattle move.”
The screwworm is a parasitic fly that can infest any warm-blooded animal when the females lay eggs in wounds. It can be treated, if caught early. During an epidemic in the 20th century, the U.S. dropped trillions of sterile flies over hotspots from a fly production plant in Texas that it is now working to resurrect. The massive eradication effort ended the epidemic, but it took the cattle industry 30 years to recover, U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said last year in justifying the border closure with Mexico.
Suspending cattle movement can slow the spread of the pest, Rollins said this week.
Lubbock Feeders stopped bringing in cattle months ago because high prices for the animals sourced from U.S. ranches meant the business could lose more than $200 per head, Williams said. The feedlot has the capacity to house up to 40,000 cattle but its headcount has dropped to about 4,000.
Bobby Swift, the feedlot’s 57-year-old assistant manager, now arrives at work later because there is little work to do. One of his duties, checking on the cattle, takes just 22 minutes because there are so few, he said.
Bobby Swift sits in his office at Lubbock Feeders, a feedlot he started working at in 1988 and that is now on the brink of closure due to beef supply chain issues, in Lubbock, Texas, U.S., April 22, 2026. REUTERS/Annie Rice
“When you’re as slow as we are, mentally it takes an effect on you,” said Swift, a 30-year employee whose father and grandfather worked at Lubbock Feeders.
REBUILDING THE HERD IS SLOW
The rising cost of beef has become an affordability issue among consumers ahead of U.S. midterm elections as they also grapple with increased fuel costs. President Donald Trump has tried to address it by urging cattle producers to lower prices, ordering the Department of Justice to investigate meatpackers, and allowing low-tariff imports from Argentina. But what would help drive down prices more is a larger U.S. cattle herd.
U.S. meatpackers are waiting for American cattle producers to expand their herds to boost beef output, a process that can take two years.
Producers said Trump’s push for larger low-tariff beef imports from Argentina made it harder to convince them to rebuild herds. The move upset ranchers but has failed to bring down costs for consumers.
Producers also have been reluctant to increase production because of risks from dry weather and uncertainty over future profits.
In Tulia, Texas, 74 miles (119 km) north of Lubbock, farmer Eddie Womack said he may cut his herd to 200 cows from about 600 cows unless rain arrives this summer to ease a severe drought that left him without crops to use as feed. He bought feed at higher costs instead.
“We go through another devastating year and we’ll have to say, ‘We’re gone. We’ve got to sell,’” said Womack, 63.
MEXICAN PRODUCERS PROFIT
García is one of many beef producers expanding in Mexico.
He began fattening cattle on a small scale four years ago to diversify his business after previously exporting about 900 head annually to Kansas. The U.S. border closure accelerated his shift and helped boost his income by 8% to 10%, García said.
Item 1 of 11 A drone view shows cattle in a pasture, while Mexico’s beef exports grow as U.S. producers face shrinking herds and market pressure following Washington’s halt to cross-border cattle shipments, in Castanos, Mexico, June 2, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril
[1/11]A drone view shows cattle in a pasture, while Mexico’s beef exports grow as U.S. producers face shrinking herds and market pressure following Washington’s halt to cross-border cattle shipments, in Castanos, Mexico, June 2, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Becerril
With screwworm now present in the U.S., the border is unlikely to reopen soon, which García said this week is encouraging him to build out his beef production business.
“In the end, we are going to get to the United States just the same, but now with meat,” he said.
Mexico’s exports to the U.S. surged by 23% in the first four months of 2026, according to Mexico’s main meat producers council, which aims to double shipments next year.
Coahuila, one of Mexico’s main beef-exporting states, is pushing to expand federally and U.S.-certified slaughter and packing capacity to support exports with help from the Mexican government, said Isaias Montemayor, the state’s deputy minister of livestock and rural infrastructure.
“The passing of the months has taught us that if these producers add value,” Montemayor said, “they can obtain a profit equal to or even greater than what they would get if they exported live calves.”
Rollins said that suspending imports of Mexican cattle successfully delayed screwworm’s incursion into the U.S. and that ports of entry would remain shut to Mexican cattle until further notice.
The White House referred questions to the USDA, which said in a statement: “Efforts at the federal, state, and local levels have been focused on containing the pest and implementing protocols.”
We go through another devastating year and we’ll have to say, ‘We’re gone. We’ve got to sell,
Eddie Womack
Rogelio Perez of Mexico’s National Confederation of Livestock Organizations said the border closure had forced Mexico’s industry to adjust, and ended up strengthening it. “The profit from producing meat now stays in Mexico with a consequent impact on the American industry,” he said.
MEATPACKERS UNDER PRESSURE
The border closure has pressured U.S. meatpackers, in addition to some cattle feeders, by exacerbating already tight domestic supplies. Processors such as Tyson Foods TSN.N have reported steep losses in U.S. beef businesses as costs for cattle outpaced gains in beef prices.
U.S. meatpacking executives said they need more cattle to operate plants efficiently and that resuming imports from Mexico would have the biggest impact on supplies over the next 12 to 18 months.
Silvina Rodriguez, who worked at a Tyson Foods meatpacking plant for over a decade, hugs her coworkers as they finish their last shift before the plant’s final shutdown later that month, in Lexington, Nebraska, U.S. January 16, 2026. REUTERS/Carlos Barria/File Photo
Tyson Foods slashed operations this year at a beef plant in Amarillo, Texas, about 195 km (120 miles) north of Lubbock, and permanently shut a massive beef plant in Nebraska. The company said it made the cutbacks, which eliminated jobs for thousands of workers, to be more competitive.
Rivals JBS and Cargill have faced rare labor disputes at U.S. beef plants, pushing back against workers’ demands for higher pay.
Darin Parker, president of global meat distributor PMI Foods, said USDA should reopen the border.
“It’s quintessential Americana to be in the beef industry,” Parker said. “We need to really protect this industry.”