Politics in Richmond, Calif., have revolved around one company for decades: Chevron. The oil giant operates a massive refinery in the city, creating jobs and contributing millions of dollars in tax revenue that helps fund local government. Despite its outsized economic role, Chevron has remained the primary political target of Richmond's democratic socialist leaders, particularly the influential Richmond Progressive Alliance (RPA).

The relationship between Richmond and Chevron has evolved from one of corporate dominance and influence to one of persistent conflict as the city's leadership moves further to the left.

"I think it's pretty much a fact that for 100 years Chevron pretty much controlled the city of Richmond," former Richmond Mayor Tom Butt told Fox News Digital.

"When I first got elected, the politics in Richmond were — the power in Richmond resided in big developers, industries, particularly Chevron, and lobbyists, that sort of thing. And so that was what I was fighting," Butt said. He added that the turning point came in the mid-2000s as the RPA began gaining influence. According to Butt, while he was skeptical of the RPA, the coalition was helpful in the city's fight against Chevron.

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The Chevron refinery, which is still operational, was completed in July 1902, according to the company's website, around three years before Richmond was incorporated as a city in 1905. Chevron noted that in 2002, as the refinery marked its 100th anniversary, it had over 1,300 employees and spanned 2,900 acres.

Current Richmond Mayor Eduardo Martinez, a member of the RPA and a democratic socialist, told Fox News Digital that he does not believe there are any communities hosting major oil companies that have achieved a balanced relationship between residents and industry.

"The imbalance we see today stems from a lack of accountability and compassion among multibillion-dollar corporations whose operations can affect the health and safety of surrounding communities. True balance will be achieved only when corporations operate responsibly and give equal consideration to the needs of the communities they impact, not solely to the interests of shareholders," he said.

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The city's frustrations with Chevron go beyond local politics. Over the years, refinery incidents have raised concerns among residents about safety, pollution and corporate accountability.

In March 1999, an explosion and fire at the Chevron refinery released toxic fumes and prompted a shelter-in-place warning. SFGate reported at the time that three Chevron emergency response team workers were injured, and multiple workers were seen coughing. A spokesperson for the company told SFGate in 1999 that an explosion led to "a very hot fire, and when you have burning liquid it's unpredictable. We're throwing everything we have at it."

A defining moment in Chevron's relationship with Richmond came in August 2012, when a ruptured pipe released flammable, high-temperature light gas oil that partially vaporized into a large opaque cloud. The U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) found that the vapor cloud ignited approximately two minutes after the release, triggering a massive fire.

While no one was killed, approximately 15,000 people sought medical treatment in the weeks that followed for ailments including breathing problems, chest pain, shortness of breath, sore throats and headaches. The CSB ultimately concluded that the rupture resulted from severe corrosion and found that Chevron had failed to effectively implement internal recommendations to inspect or replace vulnerable piping before the accident.

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The refinery incidents fueled longstanding skepticism toward Chevron among many Richmond residents and activists, creating political momentum for leaders who argued the company should face greater oversight and contribute more to the economy.

Politics in Richmond became increasingly focused on Chevron after the 2012 fire, with activists and city leaders pushing the company to contribute more to the community. The tension culminated in 2024, when the Richmond City Council approved a deal in which Chevron agreed to pay $550 million in exchange for the removal of a proposed refinery tax measure from the ballot.

Chevron told local news outlet Richmondside that the "agreement ensures Chevron Richmond can continue to provide Northern California with the affordable, reliable and ever-cleaner energy the region’s economy needs."

While Richmond leaders celebrated the deal as a victory, some residents questioned whether continued pressure on Chevron could push the company to leave, potentially triggering major economic consequences.

Butt argued that Chevron became an issue that helped the RPA go from a fringe movement to a major force in Richmond politics.

"I think the secret to the RPA's initial success has to do with Chevron," he said. "They identified an issue in Richmond that had enough sympathy that they could win an election on it."

Butt said that Chevron's waning influence in Richmond was evident in a 2014 municipal election. Chevron shelled out approximately $3 million to back a slate of preferred candidates, all of whom were defeated.

"They put $3 million, which is a lot of money in Richmond, into backing a slate of candidates and all their candidates lost. And that was kind of the turning point for them where they went from owning Richmond to not owning Richmond," Butt told Fox News Digital.

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Even some of Chevron's critics acknowledge that Richmond faces a difficult balancing act between trying to hold the oil giant accountable without completely pushing it out. However, Butt believes that the RPA is hoping Chevron will close its doors.

"The RPA basically would love to see Chevron closed down tomorrow, and then you know what they would do at that point for jet fuel and for gasoline for their cars and that sort of thing, I don't think they think that far ahead. That's just not it, it doesn't mean anything to them," he said.

The risk of Chevron scaling back its presence in California is not entirely hypothetical, as the company has already relocated its headquarters from San Ramon, Calif., to Houston, Texas. For some Richmond residents, the move reinforced concerns about the city's approach to the company.

"Chevron built Richmond because, you know, back in the day everybody used to live two blocks away from Chevron," Mark Wassberg, a Richmond resident and former Chevron worker, told Fox News Digital.

Wassberg argued that the refinery jobs are difficult to replace with newer positions in green-energy, saying that he was making $1,400 weekly and had no overtime limits.

Not all Richmond residents who expressed concern about Chevron's future were completely against the city working to hold the company accountable. Richmond resident Stephen London said pollution concerns are common in the area and praised city leaders for extracting concessions from Chevron.

"The city's on an upswing and, you know, we got a lot of money out of Chevron for their pollution. I think they get some of the credit for that from what I understand," London said.

However, London acknowledged that there were risks if the accountability push were to go too far.

"You don't really want to kill the golden goose, you just want to squeeze a bunch of eggs out of them," he later said.

For London and other Richmond residents, the challenge facing city leadership is to find a way to hold Chevron accountable while preserving the jobs and tax revenue that the company has provided for generations.

Fox News Digital reached out to Chevron for comment but did not immediately receive a response. 

House Democrats are raising concerns about how race and jury selection may have impacted the guilty verdict in the Karmelo Anthony case, with several arguing the verdict highlights the racism they believe exists in the criminal justice system.

"A travesty, two lives ruined, and what struck me most is that you had an all-White jury," Rep. Christian Menefee, D-Texas, said when asked his thoughts on the guilty verdict. "You had preemptive strikes that were used in order to achieve an all-White jury."

After Anthony was sentenced to 35 years in prison on Tuesday for the stabbing and killing of 17-year-old Austin Metcalf at a high school track event, many activists and Democratic lawmakers have claimed the trial to be unfair and racist. 

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Many are claiming the jurors were all White, and that this contributed to the rejection of Anthony's self-defense claim.

"Juries should represent the diversity of this country, and if a White kid was convicted of murder and it was an all-Black jury that did the conviction, people would say this is patently unfair," Menefee said. "So why should it be fair if it's the other way around?"

But sources close to the trial told Fox News Digital that there were three jurors who were racial minorities. They said that of the 18 total jurors, including alternates, six were minorities. Additionally, four Black men testified in defense of Metcalf, saying Anthony was not provoked in any way to justify stabbing the 17-year-old.

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Supporters of Anthony claim that he stabbed Metcalf as an act of self defense, arguing he did not receive a fair trial. Some activists and Democratic lawmakers have called for further review of the case and urged Anthony to pursue an appeal.

"Here is a case where a young man certainly appears to have been being attacked and defended himself," Rep. Troy Carter, D-La., said about the case.

"It does bring in light the imbalance in our judicial system, as it relates to African Americans and people of color" Carter continued. "And that's a shame. So hopefully, there'll be an opportunity for some appeal and some further discussion."

"Case after case, after case you see that if it is a young Black person, they're not allowed to be fearful, they're not allowed self-defense, they don't get the same standard ground opportunities that other people get," Menefee said. "But then other races do."

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Some lawmakers were less likely to directly blame the trial as unfair due to race, but were still sympathetic toward Anthony and were not blatantly opposed to the idea of looking further into the evidence in the case despite a verdict already being made.

"We've got to stop this loss and the killing of these young children, number one," Rep. Jonathan Jackson, D-Ill., said. "First of all, they need to reopen it and all the evidence needs to come forward."

"I think it's an unfortunate circumstance all the way around," Rep. Shomari Figures, D-Ala., said.

He continued, "You have one young man who was killed. His family will never get to be with him again. You have another young man who, for all intents and purposes, thrown a lot of years of his life. A lot of the years of this life. If he does 35 years, he’ll be 50 — in his 50s — when he gets out. And it's just totally unfortunate."

Throughout their criticism of the verdict, several lawmakers framed the case as part of a larger debate over race, self-defense claims and equal treatment for minorities under the law.

"The American justice system does not work equally for everybody," Menefee said.

Artifacts that haven't seen the light of day in 251 years are being discovered at the Bunker Hill Monument in Charlestown, Massachusetts – just in time for the nation's 250th birthday.

The project is one of the first archaeological digs at the site of the battle fought on June 17, 1775.

Crews are wanting to learn more about the earthen fortification, known as the redoubt, which is essentially a dirt fort colonial soldiers built by hand overnight before fighting began.

"We know that the fortification was up here, but nobody has been able to identify where specifically it is after all of these years," said Project Archaeologist for the City of Boston, Lauryn Sharp. "Even with the monument being built, there wasn't any evidence of where the actual redoubt was, so this is kind of the first hand that we are adding this information back into the story."

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Through the dig, crews are hoping they will find more clues about the Battle of Bunker Hill, known as the bloodiest single day of the Revolutionary War. On the search for the redoubt, archaeologists have found artifacts from 251 years ago. 

"We found two English gun flints, a French gun flint, and then two musket balls that are consistent with being British," said Joel Bohy, a historian and material culture specialist. "This project has been extremely successful and we're learning new things about the battle that we didn't know before."

Bohy was examining a musket ball archaeologists found in one of two trenches. 

"I haven't weighed yet, but it is possibly from a provincial gun. So we've got materials used from both sides, it seems, all in this one trench," said Bohy. "You can see it struck the ground at medium velocity, but it's also got what's called a sprue, and it sticks up a lot more than a normal sprue would and that would be how it was molded."

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The City of Boston archaeology program and American Veterans Archaeological Recovery (AVAR) are leading the dig. AVAR helps veterans transition into careers in professional archeology. The non-profit specializes in battlefields and conflict sites, both in America and abroad.

 "Just being a veteran, just having served, it does give you more emotional understanding of real lived experience and what conflict is like and combat is like and taking orders is like," said Dr. Stephen Humphreys, CEO of American Veterans Archaeological Recovery.

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Humphreys said this work is an important project from a military and historical standpoint.

"But what archeology can do is it can give you more insight into the very real experiences of those typical soldiers on the ground. And of course, that's what my crew knows already from having served," said Humphreys. "So for a lot these individuals, a lot of people who fought in this battle, there really isn't anything left of them except for maybe a musket ball or a gun flint or a button."

The crews said while the artifacts are fascinating and exciting to find, it's important to remember real families have been impacted by the history at Bunker Hill. 

"251 years ago, next week, there were a lot of men who fought and died here from both sides. So as much as we get excited about these finds, we need to remember the human side of this also," said Bohy. 

The artifacts discovered during the dig will be examined in a lab and eventually added to a digital database. 

"We think we know a lot about history, and we read books and things like that, but when we dig into the ground like this and we can possibly identify where the redoubt walls were, and we find objects coming out of the hole, it makes history more three-dimensional," said Bohy. 

The City of Boston was initially set to end the project after two weeks, but may extend. As for AVAR, some of the group is heading abroad.

"We're really honored to be taking some of these same veterans and some of our crew over to Sicily to work on a bomber from World War II to see if we can give resolution to some family members," Humphreys said. "This is just part of a larger line up for us of conflict sites where we hope to bring some closure to families and let more Americans know about our military history."

The latest functional beverage trend isn't asking consumers to develop a new habit. It's asking them to upgrade one they already have.

As interest in protein consumption continues to grow, protein coffee has emerged as a popular way for consumers to combine two staples of their morning routine into a single drink.

The concept has gained traction among fitness enthusiasts, busy professionals and older adults seeking convenient ways to increase their protein intake without overhauling their diets.

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For Darcy Haggith, a 58-year-old microbiologist, endurance athlete and founder of protein coffee brand Polar Joe, the appeal comes down to practicality. Based in LaSalle, Ontario, just across the Detroit River from Michigan, Haggith began experimenting with ways to add protein to his morning coffee while trying to boost his own breakfast nutrition.

"We have a population in North America that drinks coffee routinely in the morning," Haggith said. "If you can couple that with protein and make it something truly enjoyable, that's when I think healthy habits are formed."

Haggith said he originally mixed protein powder into espresso drinks at home, hoping to find a convenient alternative to a protein-heavy breakfast. The idea eventually evolved into Polar Joe, one of a growing number of products targeting consumers interested in both nutrition and convenience. 

Its flagship blend contains 21 grams of protein and 9 grams of sugar per serving.

Nutrition experts say the concept can make sense for consumers who struggle to eat a traditional breakfast.

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Jamie Lee McIntyre, a Florida-based registered dietitian and nutrition consultant, said protein coffee can be a convenient way "to support daily protein intake goals while still enjoying your morning cup of coffee." 

She noted that the approach may be particularly beneficial for adults over 40, whose protein needs can increase to support muscle maintenance and healthy aging.

Still, she cautioned against viewing protein coffee as a substitute for a balanced breakfast.

"I wouldn't recommend using protein coffee as a replacement for a balanced breakfast," McIntyre told Fox News Digital.

"Ideally, breakfast includes a mix of protein, fiber-rich carbohydrates and other nutrients. But for someone who typically skips breakfast altogether, protein coffee can be a meaningful step up."

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The rise of protein coffee reflects a broader conversation about not only how much protein people consume, but when they consume it. While many people get most of their protein later in the day, some nutrition advocates argue that breakfast is an overlooked opportunity.

"There is no storage capacity for protein," Haggith said. "We don't store protein. We store fat. We store carbohydrates."

That thinking has helped fuel demand for protein-enhanced foods and beverages, particularly among adults over age 40 who are increasingly focused on maintaining muscle mass and supporting healthy aging.

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Consumers should look beyond front-of-package protein claims and evaluate products based on their overall nutrition profile, including sugar content, calories and caffeine levels, McIntyre said. 

Like many nutrition trends, she said, protein coffee works best as part of a balanced eating pattern rather than as a quick fix.

For Haggith, convenience may be just as important as nutrition. 

Many consumers understand the importance of healthy eating, yet struggle to find time for elaborate breakfasts before work.

"I have a food-first mentality," Haggith said, adding that he would rather people meet their nutrition goals through real food, "even though it would be a detriment to our business."

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"When you do this right," he said, "life actually gets a lot easier."

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić says relations between Serbia and the United States have undergone a dramatic transformation under President Donald Trump, a shift he says has changed public perceptions in a country where memories of the 1999 NATO bombing campaign remain deeply rooted.

In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital, Vučić praised Trump's approach to the Balkans, arguing that the administration's focus on economic cooperation rather than political pressure resonated with many Serbs. "President Trump and his team so far were working very diligently and dedicatedly on the Western Balkans," Vučić said, adding that many Serbs view his administration very differently from previous U.S. governments.

"If you ask people in Serbia just to make a comparison between Clinton and Trump's administration, or Democrats to Republicans, you wouldn't believe it," Vučić said. "It would be 90 to 10 or 95 to 5."

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The comparison is particularly striking in Serbia, where many still associate the United States with NATO's 1999 bombing campaign during the Kosovo conflict, launched to stop Serbian forces' crackdown on ethnic Albanians in Kosovo and which remains one of the most consequential events in modern Serbian history.

Vučić said he recently extended an invitation to Trump to visit Serbia and predicted the American president would receive an enthusiastic welcome.

"I hope that we'll be able to host him," Vučić said. "More people will be ready to greet him and wait for him than he might even expect…I dare to say even more than hundreds of thousands of people."

The Serbian president said the improving relationship between Washington and Belgrade is increasingly centered on economics, investment and technological cooperation, and mutual conservative values.

According to Vučić, Serbia and the United States are preparing to launch a strategic dialogue that will focus on energy, infrastructure, artificial intelligence, defense cooperation and investment opportunities. Among the projects under discussion are energy infrastructure, liquefied natural gas cooperation, data centers and advanced computing technologies.

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The growing relationship comes as Serbia seeks to position itself as a regional economic hub while continuing its long-standing ambition of joining the European Union.

Vučić pointed to preparations for Expo 2027 in Belgrade with nearly 150 participating countries, as evidence of Serbia's growing international profile and economic ambitions.

Vučić, who has served as Serbia's dominant political figure since becoming prime minister in 2014 and president in 2017, pointed to the country's economic growth as evidence of its transformation. "Our GDP was 32 billion (euros) when I became the prime minister," Vučić said. "This year it's going to be over 100 billion euros., which is $120 billion."

Vučić's relationship with Trump dates back to the president's first term, when the White House brokered a series of economic normalization agreements between Serbia and Kosovo. Rather than focusing first on the politically explosive question of Kosovo's status, the Trump administration emphasized infrastructure projects, transportation links and investment aimed at improving ties between the two sides.

In September 2020, Vučić and then-Kosovo Prime Minister Avdullah Hoti signed U.S.-brokered economic agreements at the White House that included commitments to expand rail and highway connections and promote investment. Trump described the deal as a breakthrough achieved by focusing on "job creation and economic growth" rather than longstanding political disputes.

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Asked whether he would consider recognizing Kosovo, which declared independence from Serbia in 2008 and has been recognized by the United States under President George W. Bush and most European countries, if doing so unlocked Serbia's economic future and accelerated its path toward membership in the European Union, Vučić pushed back on the premise, arguing that economic cooperation and improved relations should come before discussions about political status.

"I'm not saying that I'm ready to violate my constitution… I have always been open to talks or compromising solutions, I have always been open to developing great economic ties and no doubt much better political ties. But I was not speaking about recognition of someone's independence," he said.

While Serbia continues to pursue membership in the European Union, the country has also maintained ties with Russia and China, a balancing act that has drawn scrutiny amid Russia's war in Ukraine and growing geopolitical tensions worldwide.

Asked whether Serbia could continue navigating between East and West in an increasingly divided world or would eventually need to choose a side, Vučić rejected the notion that countries must choose between competing geopolitical camps. Instead, he pointed to both his own visit to China and Trump's engagement with Beijing as examples of what he described as pragmatic diplomacy focused on national interests.

"President Trump didn't go there because of his vanity," Vučić said of Trump's visit to China. "He brought with him all the leading people of the United States of America for making better businesses, for earning more money for their companies."

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Vučić said he adopted a similar approach during his own visit, arguing that leaders should prioritize economic opportunities for their citizens rather than ideological alignments. "I'm coming from a small country. I was asking for more investments and was fighting for the interests of my people," he said.

The Serbian president said the same pragmatic approach should guide efforts to resolve ongoing conflicts in both Ukraine and the Middle East.

"It's always better to have thousands of days of negotiations than one day of war," he said.

Asked about tensions involving Iran and the wider conflict in the Middle East, Vučić reiterated Serbia's support for Israel, a position that increasingly distinguishes Belgrade from some European governments.

"I am the president of the country that is one of the very rare countries in Europe that is not hesitating to cooperate and collaborate with Israel," he said. "And it is proud to say this publicly and openly."

Vučić warned about what he described as rising antisemitism around the world.

"From time to time, I'm very much afraid to see a lot of antisemitic slogans and antisemitic banners," he said.

"The Serbian president said Serbia has resisted those trends and pledged that it would continue to do so under his leadership."

"It does not happen in Serbia, and it won't happen as long as I'm the president."

For too long, the debate over permitting reform has been confined to the wonky world of Washington insiders — endless discussions about transmission lines, pipelines, lawsuits, and administrative procedures. Policymakers fixate on the bark while missing the trees, let alone the forest. The stakes are far higher than connecting a natural gas plant, wind farm or data center to the grid. The most important reason for permitting reform is to grow the U.S. defense industrial base at the speed, scale and cost efficiency needed to deter a major conflict with China, and to quickly prevail if deterrence fails.

This imperative requires a sustained U.S. capability to outperform our adversaries in the production of weapons, ships, munitions, and material. Yet for more than two decades, America’s national security, economic policies, and stifling environmental review processes hollowed out domestic manufacturing and largely transferred our defense-related industrial capabilities and control of global supply chains to China.

The results are stark. China dominates global manufacturing, particularly those industries indispensable to defense. Its steel production exceeds America’s by roughly 12-to-1. In shipbuilding, China possesses capacity roughly 230 times that of the United States. A single major Chinese shipyard can exceed the total output of the entire U.S. commercial shipbuilding industry. American policymakers — both Democrats and Republicans — have been comatose on this front for far too long.

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Recent conflicts offer sobering previews of how profoundly these disparities matter in wartime. In Ukraine, U.S. and allied munitions production has struggled to keep pace with demand. For example, America ramped 155mm artillery shell output from about 14,000 per month to around 40,000, falling far short of Ukraine’s needs — estimated at 150,000–200,000 shells monthly — and exposing fragile, just-in-time supply chains. Similar constraints appear in meeting our own requirements and supporting Israel against Iranian-backed threats. Peacetime atrophy — dormant production lines, retired skilled workers, overseas dependence, and regulatory bottlenecks — has left the U.S. defense industrial base ill-equipped for sustained, high-intensity conflict.

History underscores the danger of underestimating industrial power. Nazi Germany developed formidable new technologies during World War II: the Me 262 jet fighter, V-2 ballistic missiles, and advanced tanks. These "wonder weapons" stunned Allied forces when they appeared on the battlefield. Yet America’s overwhelming manufacturing juggernaut is what proved decisive. Mobilizing factories across the heartland, the United States produced nearly 300,000 aircraft, 86,000 tanks, and thousands of ships, vastly outproducing the Axis powers combined.

Similarly, in the Civil War, 90 percent of our manufacturing economy was in the North — which produced 20 times more pig iron and 32 times more firearms than the South — which was still primarily an agrarian economy. Perhaps more ominously is the lesson we can draw from the North’s embrace of mechanization, which allowed threshing to be done 12 times faster than slave labor. Today’s corollary is Artificial Intelligence (AI) — the Great Power which dominates AI will gain the upper hand easily in any conflict, just like the North did, dominating the South which clung to the morally repugnant — but also ineffective — manual labor. Both mechanization and AI need reliable, dispatchable power to provide their economic and industrial benefits.

Today, China enjoys the advantage once held by America. China’s defense industrial base and supporting infrastructure can much more easily shift to a wartime footing, surging output of ships, munitions, and material with little or no bureaucratic or legal constraints.

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Reversing America’s defense industrial decline requires more than a tweak to an administrative process, increasing permitting staff, or changing deadlines for filing lawsuits. It demands a fundamental change in mindset of how, and why, government places so many obstacles in the way of the rapid expansion and rebuilding of our defense industrial base. Roads, bridges, ports, rail, power generation and delivery and computing infrastructure are foundational infrastructure. Factories cannot hum without affordable and reliable power. Mines and processing facilities for critical materiels — essential for munitions, electronics, and advanced weapons — cannot secure funding and achieve necessary scale amid regulatory paralysis.

Without this complex industrial ecosystem, we risk strategic vulnerability no amount of technological innovation can offset. American spirit and ingenuity are real assets, but cannot conjure raw materials and weapons systems from thin air when supply chains falter and projects languish in endless reviews. Congress and the administration must treat permitting modernization as a core national security priority.

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The most important element is time. Time is power — China builds three times faster than we do. Time is money — Chinese defense output costs a fraction of ours. Every year a U.S. defense infrastructure project is hung up in permitting adds 10-20 % to its final cost. Typical delays of more than five years lead to projects costing two or three times more than they need to. Eliminating this delay would not only unleash defense production with the speed and scale needed to keep the peace, but deliver it while saving hundreds of billions of dollars in defense spending.

To accomplish this, Congress and the states must reach across the aisle and legislatively approve maintenance, replacement and new construction of defense industrial supply chains and preclude any further environmental review, permitting, and judicial review of such process.

I’ve worked with sincere Democrats like Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and John Hickenlooper (D-CO) to build consensus and extend my thanks and trust to them. We all are committed to assuring environmental protection and reaffirm these industries must comply with all specified environmental performance requirements. They will remain subject to the full array of legal requirements for monitoring, reporting, inspection, enforcement, citizen suits, judicial review and punitive civil, criminal, and damages liability for any noncompliance. Ample bipartisan precedent for this approach has long been in place in non-security related laws such as health and safety, financial transactions, and border construction, while recent targeted federal and state laws waived permitting for public housing, fracking, pipelines, and chip manufacturing plants.

The need to tackle the challenges of this permitting reform forest is clear: America’s ability to deter conflict, or to win if deterrence fails, rests on American industrial might. Permitting reform is the essential first step toward rebuilding it. The time for tepid measures and insider debates is over.

Many Americans stocking up for summer cookouts are navigating three competing trends: a heightened demand for protein, an increased emphasis on health and historically high beef prices.

Seventy percent of Americans report protein as the nutrient they most want to consume, a 2025 International Food Information Council survey found. That helps explain why burgers remain a summer staple despite rising beef prices and certain health concerns.

Ground beef prices are up 14% from a year ago, according to NielsenIQ retail data. U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) data shows average fresh beef prices reached a record $9.64 per pound in April.

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Despite the high price of beef, the American Farm Bureau Federation reported in May that "demand for meat continues to grow."

More than half of Americans (52%) surveyed said "the healthiness of food is highly important when deciding what to eat," according to Pew Research from last year. The same Pew survey also found, however, that 69% of Americans said food price hikes make it more difficult for them to eat healthfully. 

"The 'healthiest burger' isn't determined by a single ingredient. It will be relative to a person's health goals and nutrient needs," Caroline West Passerrello, Ed.D., RDN, LDN, a spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, told Fox News Digital.

"Beef, poultry, seafood and even plant-based burgers can all have a place on the menu," she added. "Rather than looking for a perfect burger, consumers may benefit from considering protein quality, saturated fat, sodium, portion size and what they're pairing it with."

Burgers shouldn't be labeled as inherently good or bad — and there are pros and cons of each type, Passerrello said.

Plant-based options aren't automatically healthier, Passerrello said. High-quality animal protein sources are rich in iron, zinc and vitamin B12, she noted.

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Many chefs recommend choosing ground beef with an 80/20 or 85/15 meat-to-fat ratio for the juiciest, most flavorful burger.

"Choosing 80% lean beef may improve flavor and satisfaction for some people, but that doesn't necessarily make it the healthiest option for everyone," Passerrello cautioned. "Individuals with elevated LDL cholesterol, cardiovascular disease or those working to reduce saturated fat intake may prefer leaner cuts."

The best choice of beef depends on personal health goals, taste preferences and overall dietary pattern, she said.

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While some consumers are experimenting with more decadent burger toppings such as truffle aioli, foie gras, goat cheese or caviar, the classics — cheese, lettuce, tomato, ketchup and onion — are still the most popular, as of a 2021 YouGov survey.

These basic toppings also typically make the best burger, Wahlburgers executive chef Paul Wahlberg told Fox News Digital.

"Sometimes less is better," he said. "The simpler, the better is always good."

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Consumers should consider the overall meal when evaluating the healthfulness and cost of a backyard burger, Passerrello said.

"A burger doesn't exist in isolation," she said.

"The bun, toppings, condiments, portion size, beverages and side dishes can have just as much influence on the nutritional quality of the meal as the patty itself. Adding vegetables, choosing whole grains when available and balancing the meal with fruits or vegetables can meaningfully improve overall nutrient intake."