Perriello Demands Response to “National Farm Crisis for Farmers”

Calls Out McGuire and Trump for Decisions to Sell Out Cattle Farmers and Rural Communities

CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA — With diesel prices reaching all-time highs, fertilizer prices still elevated, rural health clinics closing, and cheap foreign beef imports flooding the market, Virginia farmers are being bankrupted by the actions of President Donald Trump and supported by Rep. John McGuire. In an interview released on Monday, Mecklenburg farmer and president of the NBCA, John Boyd said this is a "national farm crisis for farmers," telling NPR's Morning Edition that he's having to come up with money that's not in his budget just to keep his equipment running during harvest.

“This crisis facing Virginia farmers like Dr. Boyd is man-made, and that man is President Trump, with the full support of Rep. McGuire, who should know better than to start a war that we do not need in the middle of planting season and then flood the market with low-grade foreign beef,” said Tom Perriello. “There is no Farm Bill in sight, diesel is over $6 per gallon for the first time ever, and rural health clinics are closing down. Then McGuire insulted our intelligence by claiming that gas and diesel prices had nothing to do with the Iran war he supports. Folks around here know that dog just won’t hunt.”

Diesel has hit a national record above $6.51 a gallon, landing on top of already-skyrocketing healthcare costs — under H.R. 1, premiums in the Fifth District have risen more than $2,600 for a family of four making $66,000 a year, one more hit farmers and rural families can't absorb.

And the president isn't stopping there. His executive order lowering foreign beef prices to 25% below market rate amounts to an all-out war on the same farmers already reeling from those costs. Experts predict the plan will do little to lower retail grocery bills, since the imports are sold primarily to institutional buyers, while further endangering cattle producers' livelihoods as they face soaring costs for fuel, feed, and fertilizer.

During a recent visit to Nelson County, Perriello met with Zachary Morse of Roundhouse Beef, the 2025 National Black Farmer of the Year, to discuss the mounting economic pressures on local livestock producers.

“Where is 'America First' here? All the things that were promised to help us... it feels like we're going backwards,” said Morse. “Right now, beef cattle farmers feel like we're being picked on. Try raising cattle. Try baling hay or dealing with drought and worrying if there’s going to be enough water in the creek. I remember paying less than $4 for 5 gallons of diesel fuel—today I’m paying $30.”

Perriello has a strong record as a champion for the Fifth District’s cattle industry. As a member of Congress, he secured emergency funding to help struggling family farmers. He co-sponsored the National Farm-to-School Act to ensure local beef producers could supply directly to local and regional educational institutions. He remains committed to ensuring that Virginia’s cattle industry has the support it needs to feed the Commonwealth and the nation.

Perriello previously represented Virginia’s Fifth District and represented the United States as a Special Envoy, leading international negotiations. He has spent 20 years leading non-profit organizations fighting to increase wages, expand affordable healthcare, and protect the rights guaranteed by our Constitution. Tom has been endorsed by Senators Warner and Kaine, and by more than 70 local and statewide leaders.

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