During an appearance with Fox News host Laura Ingraham, two prominent cattle farmers discussed the troubling development, detailing how meat production in America has declined over recent years.

Two cattle ranchers called low beef production a “crisis” for Americans and warned on Fox News that major meat-packing companies are now beginning to invest in bugs.

National Black Farmers Association Founder John Boyd Jr. and cattle rancher Shad Sullivan appeared on “The Ingraham Angle” to discuss the decline within the cattle industry in the United States. Fox host Laura Ingraham began by questioning Boyd Jr. on how “bad” the issue could get for the average American who consumes beef. Boyd said that not only are herds significantly “depleting” for cattle ranchers, but called out the funding the U.S. has given to Ukraine and not its farmers.

“Well, you know, farmers are going out of business every day,” Boyd said. “What happening is America’s beef cattle producers are depleting their herds, so they’re not having more calves so they can multiply. We are producing 1 billion pounds less of American beef than we were last year this time. So, this is a crisis that is going to affect every American at the local grocery stores.”

“But here’s what’s problematic for me,” Boyd continued. “We have all of these other foreign countries – $100 billion to Ukraine and help Ukraine farmers, but we won’t help America’s farmers right here at home. We have Americans facing farm foreclosure and USDA will not stop farm foreclosures in this country for direct loans, guaranteed loans, and other agricultural lenders….We’re down to 40,000 Black farmers in this country and guess what? We are facing extinction. These policies aren’t helping cattlemen, like myself, stay on the farm. We have the highest input costs that you are seeing in decades. Diesel fuel prices going through. And this is why farmers can’t stay on the farm. We need good policies that can help us stay on the farm.”

The transition from beef to bugs prompts significant concerns for rural economies that rely heavily on traditional farming. The decline in beef production not only threatens the livelihood of cattle ranchers but also poses existential threats to rural communities. Moreover, it could also substantially alter how the nation produces and consumes its food.

However, the issue is not a simple one. It is fraught with various complexities that the nation will have to navigate.

For starters, there is a distinct cultural hesitancy towards the idea of incorporating insects into the Western diet. It would be nearly impossible to convince a wide swath of Americans to trade that juicy rare New York Strip for burger patties made of Jiminy Cricket and his friends. The “ick” factor is too strong at the moment. Yet, this does not mean there are no cultural forces already introducing the idea, priming the public for a future transition. Indeed, the United Nations has gotten in on the act and is pressuring developed nations to get their citizens to eat less meat.

Next, we have the inevitable role of government, which elites will leverage in order to push the populace towards a shift in diet. Boyd’s criticism of government policy is apt; there is a lack of support for American farmers. Instead, the state seems more fixated on shifting the public away from gas-powered vehicles and appliances to save us all from the fiery apocalypse that is sure to happen any day now because of climate change. It is reasonable to assume that the government will also be intimately involved in trying to push America to quench its hunger with bugs instead of beef.

Indeed, the government is already funding companies participating in edible insect research.

With the $131,500 USDA Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) grant award that began June 1 of last year, the company planned to develop a way to turn consumer waste into cricket feed. This product would be used as feed for small-scale farming operations.

“Crickets are typically farmed in controlled environments where they are fed organic feed and have plenty of space to move around,” said the company.

While Mighty Cricket said that the insects require much less water, land, and feed than other protein as protein sources such as beef or pork, it also said costs have limited the growth of cricket protein. Per the grant description, cricket protein retails for over twice the price of conventional proteins and the two biggest factors driving up costs are “lack of innovation and economies of scale.”

Enter Mighty Cricket’s granted-funded research and development project.

“The company will establish a pilot farm in St. Louis, where it will source waste materials from local grocery stores and food manufacturers, transforming them into high-quality feed for crickets,” it explained. “Cricket protein is a superfood quickly growing in popularity, touted for its nutritional and sustainable benefits. The company already has product lines of cricket-based protein products on the market, selling both online and in retailers such as Fresh Thyme.”

The speculation about the future of the U.S. cattle industry and alternative protein sources is fraught with several uncertainties. The farmers highlighted the importance of preserving traditional ways of raising and consuming food. Yet, the powers that be are insistent on convincing Americans to switch to bugs.

Will insects replace beef? It’s too soon to tell. There can be little doubt that at least a significant percentage of people might be willing to supplement their diets with insects. However, it is not clear whether the majority can be persuaded to make this change anytime soon. Either way, there are ample reasons to expect some serious changes coming up in the not-too-distant future.