Pentagon to buy six-month advance supply of meat from struggling livestock producers, on Obama order

The Defense Logistics Agency is buying a six-month advanced meat supply, estimated at more than $100 million, for its Department of Defense customers by order of President Obama to give some relief to the drought-riddled livestock industry. The DLA asked its top three vendors to buy, store and distribute beef, pork, lamb, chicken and catfish.

The vendor Subsistence provided hundreds of millions of pounds of meat to the U.S. military and other DOD agency across the world in 2011, reports Rita Gabbett of Meatingplace. Subsistence officials are negotiating with prime vendors on storage and distribution fees, estimated to cost between $2.4 and $3.3 million.