Finding relief from escalating beef prices hinges on a challenge that isn’t easily resolved: rejuvenating the dwindling cattle population across America.

Ranchers nationwide are grappling with the smallest cattle population in 75 years, a shortage that’s having a domino effect from grazing fields to major meatpacking operations in the United States.

Last week, Tyson Foods announced plans to shutter beef processing plants in Illinois and Utah and to sell a facility in Washington. This decision comes as the company navigates what it describes as one of the most significant cattle shortages in the nation’s history. According to Tyson, recent reports from the USDA indicate these supply challenges are unlikely to ease anytime soon.

USDA statistics reveal that as 2026 commenced, the U.S. had about 86.2 million cattle and calves, marking the smallest count since the early 1950s. This figure is a sharp drop from the approximately 94.7 million recorded in 2019, representing a reduction of over 8 million cattle.

Replenishing this diminished supply will be a gradual process, especially following several years of circumstances that have compelled ranchers to scale back their herds.

Chief among them is persistent drought.

“The biggest thing has been drought,” Eric Belasco, head of the agricultural economics department at Montana State University, previously told Fox News Digital.

He said years of dry weather have depleted grasslands across the West and Plains, leaving ranchers without enough feed or water to sustain their herds. Many have been forced to sell cattle early, including cows needed to produce the next generation of calves, making the road to recovery even longer.

The effects are reaching beyond ranches and into grocery stores, where consumers are paying more for beef.

According to USDA data, the retail value of Choice beef rose from about $8.51 per pound in August 2024 to $10.49 per pound in July 2026, an increase of roughly 23%.

Behind that price pressure is a cattle supply crunch that experts say has been years in the making.

“The biggest thing has been drought,” Eric Belasco, head of the agricultural economics department at Montana State University, previously told Fox News Digital.

He said years of dry weather have depleted grasslands across the West and Plains, leaving ranchers without enough feed or water to sustain their herds.

Many have been forced to sell cattle early, including cows needed to produce the next generation of calves, making the road to recovery even longer.

For consumers waiting for cheaper beef, the path to relief starts with rebuilding America’s cattle herds, a process that could take years.

The untimely death of acclaimed actor Robert Carradine has sparked legal action from his family, as his children have launched a lawsuit against the Regents of the University of California. They contend that inadequate staffing at UCLA’s neuropsychiatric hospital played a pivotal role in precipitating their father’s unfortunate demise. 

At the age of 71, Carradine passed away on February 23, succumbing to complications from an anoxic brain injury he sustained during a suicide attempt. The tragic incident occurred while he was under medical care at UCLA’s renowned Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital. 

In response, Carradine’s children—daughters Ever and Marika, along with son Ian—have initiated a wrongful death lawsuit. Citing elder abuse and neglect, they have named the university regents and several other individuals in their legal documents.

Documents presented to the court, and reported by The Daily Mail, reveal that Carradine had voluntarily checked himself into the Resnick facility twice within the span of a month. Initially admitted on January 9 for a week, he returned on January 16 due to experiencing a ‘manic episode with suicidal ideation.’ 

Carradine reportedly felt “relieved to be hospitalized,” expressing hopes that “further inpatient treatment would” alleviate his mounting anxiety, as indicated in court filings.

‘But Robert’s hopes for successful treatment didn’t match the reality he had stepped into,’ the document claims. ‘Instead of walking into a safe environment, he walked into a locked facility that broke a cardinal rule for a hospitalized psychiatric patient with active suicidal thoughts and a history of suicide attempts.’

Carradine’s children specifically highlighted that he was never stripped of a ‘belt,’ which is outlined as contraband, the complaint alleges.

‘The belongings form that UCLA generated from Robert’s admission shows the facility failed to confiscate his belt,’ the lawsuit alleged. ‘UCLA also left a rolling bedside table in his room, which was not a standard piece of furniture in the locked psych unit.’

The Daily Mail has reached out to UCLA and UC Regents for comment.

Carradine’s manner of death was ruled suicide in June. 

He endured a long struggle with serious mental illness that his family has spoken about publicly. 

Medical Examiner records state that the actor had a history of bipolar disorder, severe depression with psychotic features, anxiety and prior suicidal ideation.

‘None of this happened because UCLA lacked the knowledge, the policies or the means,’ the family’s lawsuit said. ‘It happened because UCLA took shortcuts with two safeguards that were meant to protect Robert’s life.’

Carradine’s children also claimed ‘no one watched him or checked on him for long periods of time despite orders to watch him every 15 minutes.’

‘The staff member assigned to watch Robert sat in a chair in the hallway and entered observations into an iPad without ever looking at him. 

‘The iPad carried forward whatever information had last been entered, so that UCLA staff were allowed to click that they had checked on someone without ever looking at them. On paper, UCLA produced a perfect record, making it look like they were checking on suicidal patients every 15 minutes. 

‘In reality, UCLA allowed staff to cut corners knowing that doing so placed its patients with suicidal ideation, including Robert at risk of suicide and death.’

Additionally, the filing stated UCLA ‘did not investigate reality’ and recorded ‘a version of events’ contradicted by video surveillance.

The plaintiffs are seeking general damages, special and economic damages, and wrongful damages.

According to the medical examiner’s investigative summary, Carradine voluntarily admitted himself to UCLA’s Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital on January 16, 2026 because he was experiencing suicidal thoughts.

The following day, hospital staff found him unresponsive in his room after what investigators described as an apparent hanging involving a leather belt.

Medical personnel were able to restore circulation and Carradine was transferred to intensive care, where he remained hospitalized for more than five weeks.

His condition continued to deteriorate and he was pronounced dead on February 23.

The medical examiner’s report lists the cause of death as ‘sequelae of anoxic brain injury’ due to hanging. The report notes that no foul play was suspected.

Investigators interviewed family members as part of the inquiry into Carradine’s death.

Carradine had battled bipolar disorder, depression and psychosis for roughly two decades and had recently become increasingly depressed.

The records also indicate that Carradine had previously sought treatment for suicidal thoughts at the same facility.

Family members believed he had been discharged too early following an earlier hospitalization before he returned and admitted himself again in January.

He is survived by his three children – actress Ever Carradine, Marika Reed Carradine, and Ian Alexander Carradine. 

Law enforcement officials have confirmed there are no “signs of foul play” in the tragic death of “Heroes” actress Hayden Panettiere, who was discovered by an acquaintance.

The 36-year-old star was found “unresponsive” in a Greenville, South Carolina apartment on Sunday around 1:50 p.m.

“Medical personnel provided assistance upon arrival; however, the individual, later identified as Hayden Panettiere, was pronounced deceased at the scene,” a spokesperson for the Greenville police disclosed to NBC News.

The ongoing investigation is being conducted by the Greenville Police Department in collaboration with the Greenville County Coroner’s Office.

“Preliminary findings have not revealed any indicators of foul play or suspicious circumstances. The 911 call was made by an acquaintance of Ms. Panettiere,” police stated.

A cause of death has not been revealed. 

“There’s an investigation ongoing,” Kacey Kitchen, the late actress’ publicist, said.

“We should know more tomorrow.”

Police responded to an incident involving the actress Sunday, law enforcement sources told TMZ, revealing the investigation was open.

She boarded a plane from Los Angeles with her on-again, offer-again boyfriend Brian Hickerson Saturday, according to the outlet.

Panettiere, from Palisades, NY, was best known for playing Claire Bennet in “Heroes” and Juliette Barnes in “Nashville.”

She starred in commercials as an infant before landing gigs on soap operas like “One Life to Live” in 1994 and “Guiding Light” in 1997. Panettiere was just 4-years-old when she appeared on the daytime soap “One Life to Live.”

“My introduction to acting was actually at 11 months old,” Panettiere told “Entertainment Tonight” in 2023.

“Playskool Toy Train was my first commercial, but, I don’t know if that would really be an introduction to acting, because I don’t think acting was involved at that point. I didn’t have lines, I was just playing.”

During the 1990s, she played Sarah Roberts in “One Life to Live” and voiced Dot in the 1998 movie “A Bug’s Life.” 

Panettiere appeared in shows such as “Ally McBeal,” “Law & Order: Special Victims Unit,” and “Malcolm in the Middle” during the early 2000s.

She played Kirby Reed in the 2011 slasher movie “Scream 4,” a role she later reprised in 2023 in “Scream VI.”

“I love you Hayden,” David Arquette, Panettiere’s co-star in “Scream 4,” wrote on social media, reacting to her death.

“Rest in peace sweet Hayden,” Melissa Barrera, who starred alongside Panettiere in “Scream VI”, posted on her Instagram Stories.

Panettiere was open about her struggles with opioid and alcohol addiction and postpartum depression in the years before her death. 

“I would have the shakes when I woke up and could only function with sipping alcohol,” she told People in July 2022.

She was hospitalized with jaundice and checked into rehab in 2020, spending eight months there.

“A doctor told me that if I didn’t stop drinking, I’d be dead within five years.”

The actress said she “felt more clear-headed than I’d ever been” when she left rehab in 2021.

Panettiere was a mom to daughter Kaya, 11, whom she shared with the retired heavyweight boxer Wladimir Klitschko.

She struck up a relationship with the ex-sportsman in 2009, becoming engaged in 2013. They separated in 2018.

Her final acting credit came in the 2026 Brandon Auman-directed psychological thriller movie “Sleepwalker,” where she starred alongside Justin Chatwin and Beverly D’Angelo.

In the wake of his clandestine departure from the NATO summit in Turkey, President Trump seemed unfazed by the newfound public attention detailing the extraordinary security measures employed by the Secret Service to ensure his safety.

Upon being questioned by reporters about potential dangers posed by Iranian missiles, he appeared to brush off any fears with nonchalance.

“I don’t worry about anything, to be honest. Whatever it is, you know my attitude? Whatever,” Trump stated, exuding his characteristic confidence.

Despite this public demeanor, sources revealed to the Daily Mail that the looming threat weighs on him as tensions with Iran persist and new threats emerge against his life.

First Lady Melania Trump reportedly shares a mounting concern for the President’s well-being, according to a source close to her. However, she remains assured that the Secret Service is adapting to these evolving threats, maintaining vigilance to protect him amid ongoing global tensions.

‘They want to take out the US leader, me,’ Trump said at the NATO summit prior to his departure from Turkey in July, citing intelligence reports he had reviewed that morning. ‘I’m on every single one of their lists.’

So far, Trump remarked, he had ‘been a little bit lucky’ but cautioned ‘that maybe doesn’t last very long, because that’s the way it goes,’ he said prior to leaving for the summit.

Meanwhile in Tehran, billboards with threats against the First Family have been spotted in recent days. One shows images of Melania, Barron and Ivanka Trump with their eyes edited shut and the word ‘KILLED’ labeled over them, while an AI-generated video highlighted the locations that Melania likes to shop at and how would-be assassins could target her.

Trump allies worry that the president is being ‘misled by the threat to his life’ posed by Iran.

The idea of the president leaving a NATO summit in a catering container was ’embarrassing,’ one source close to the White House told the Daily Mail. 

The concern, another source noted, was that Iran is toying with Trump’s jumpy security team, knowing that they are extremely cautious.

Iran state media predictably used the report to mock the president’s ‘humiliation’ as a result of ‘fear of Iran’s military power’ and shared a meme of the president hiding in a food catering truck.

The details of Trump’s exit going public, one source worried, would make him less inclined to participate in the future. And reports that the CIA had low confidence in the intelligence detailing a threat to the president only confirmed suspicions from some officials that the threat was overblown.

‘Iran is really trying to assassinate the president in Turkey, a country that they have a relationship with?’ a separate source asked incredulously. 

Sources told the Washington Post that the threats against the president’s life were ‘Israeli-derived’ rather than US-generated and said it was considered ‘low-confidence’ intelligence. 

Trump’s military leadership was to blame, another source noted to the Daily Mail, suggesting that Secretary of War Pete Hegseth and General Dan Caine overreacted to the poorly sourced intelligence.

The Department of War did not respond to a Daily Mail request for comment. 

However, a senior administration official strongly disagreed with criticism of the security plans in Turkey: ‘As the president has said, he has faced numerous threats on his life, including ones from Iran, and every measure is taken to ensure his safety. There is no such thing as “overreacting” when it comes to the Commander-in-Chief’s safety – that is a moronic take.’ 

Trump is normally more resistant to Secret Service orders for the sake of optics. He famously ordered agents to let him get his shoes and pause to raise his fist in defiance before exiting the stage after he was shot in the ear by a would-be assassin in Butler, Pennsylvania, in 2024.

He faced another attempted assassination at the Trump International Golf Course in West Palm Beach, Florida, in September, two months before the election. 

When he was evacuated from the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner after a gunman tried to storm the event in April, Trump adamantly lobbied agents to return to the dinner and finish the event, before finally conceding to reschedule it.

But the ongoing war in Iran has him taking threats more seriously.

‘I go by Secret Service and the military. They wanted me to go in a different flight, a different plane, for safety,’ Trump told reporters Tuesday. 

The frequent security concerns, one Washington insider noted, were shifting the conflict with Iran into more personal territory.

‘I got him before he got me,’ Trump boasted to ABC News after Ayatollah Khamenei was killed in February. ‘They tried twice. Well, I got him first.’

One source close to the White House noted that the president is more concerned about the increased threat to members of his family, particularly his 11 grandchildren.

Trump’s 19-year-old granddaughter Kai is leaving soon for the University of Miami to start her freshman year, and is set to bring her Secret Service detail with her. His 20-year-old son Barron, meanwhile, is nearby the White House attending New York University at its Washington, DC, campus – and is always surrounded by Secret Service protection. 

The Secret Service revealed in July that they had investigated more than 10,000 threats to its protectees in the first half of this year, the head of the agency revealed. 

And just this month, a man was caught with an illegal rifle and body armor while allegedly scouting Trump‘s Los Angeles golf club ahead of his visit there.

‘A potential tragedy was averted,’ said ATF Special Agent Kenneth R Cooper.

The president occasionally reminds Iran publicly that if anything happens to him, he has set up a fail-safe plan for revenge.

‘I’ve left instructions, if anything happens, to just literally bomb them at levels that they’ve never seen before,’ he told the New York Post in July.

The Daily Mail reached out to the White House for comment.