Political Lobbyist Says Price of Ground Beef Is Now Higher Than Minimum Wage — But Why?

Political lobbyist Jess Piper (@jesspipermo) claimed that the average price of ground beef is now higher than the Federal minimum wage. In a viral TikTok that's garnered over 508,000 views, she laments that the cost of living for Americans is becoming "untenable."

She begins her clip by speaking directly into the camera, saying, "The price of one pound of ground beef is now higher than the Federal Minimum hourly wage. Are we great yet?" she asks at the end of her video.

In a caption for her post, she also refers to the cost of rent in the United States, which, combined with grocery inflation, is rendering it difficult for Americans to make ends meet.

Piper writes on her TikTok page that she's the Executive Director of Blue Missouri, which raises money to fund the campaigns of Missouri state legislative nominees.

According to USDA analysis, the biggest food-at-home cost jumps occurred in July 2021, with sustained hikes persisting until July 2022. From there, grocery costs leveled off at a sustained pace before incrementally moving upwards, but in a much less dramatic fashion, until the end of 2024.

When it comes to ground beef, a Target in New Jersey sells a pound for $6.49. Walmart sells one pound of 80% lean, 20% fat ground beef for $6.93.

While this is technically lower than the $7.25 federally mandated minimum wage, there are other grass-fed ground beef offerings at grocery stores that retail for higher amounts. Like this 90/10 lean to fat ratio Target option here, which sells for $8.79 per pound.

Time reported that ground beef prices aren't directly tied to the US economy, but are exacerbated by external factors. Between 2021 throughout 2024, overall food inflation contributed to egg sticker shock.

But what made these vital sources of protein much more costly than other consumables was also "bird influenza outbreaks on American farms, which infected over 23 million birds that had to be culled," the outlet wrote.

Beef is experiencing a similar problem, but not because of any disease outbreaks, but rather, overall cattle herd sizes. Time writes that the American Farmers Bureau reported that as of June 2025, the number of cows in the United States are the lowest they've ever been in the last 75 years.

Contributing to the dearth of cattle is that the "prices for feed steers (cattle bred for slaughter) have reached record highs." This has prompted cattle farmers to sell off their livestock as they're getting paid more for their meat. This increased demand has pumped up the value of cows, which, in turn, has spiked cost increases for beef products.

Averse climate conditions have also made securing feed for cattle an issue for ranchers. During 2022, a large-scale drought affected Great Plains states, which are responsible for a lot of the nation's livestock.

Consequently, this drought had an adverse effect on cattle feed costs. Basically, less water meant less food, which meant cattle farmers had to pay more to feed their cattle.

So, in order to make ends meet, they sold off their cows. Price fluctuations gradually affected the market, so beef prices, which have already been subjected to the inflation crisis that occurred between 2021 and 2024 has been exacerbated by this cattle shortage.

As for the housing crisis that Piper alludes to in her TikTok caption, there may be some relief for prospective homeowners in the United States.

Zillow predicts that overall values for homes are expected to decrease by 1.9% in 2025. This doesn't affect rentals, however, which are speculated to increase.