Top federal meat antitrust regulator steps down

WASHINGTON — J. Dudley Butler will end his tenure next week as head of the Grain Inspection Packers and Stockyards Administration, the agency said Thursday.

Butler oversaw key parts of the Obama administration''s effort to pass antitrust reforms covering the meat packing industry. A fight over the regulations pitted small farmers and ranchers against some of the nation''s biggest meat companies.

The effort ended late last year after Congress killed funding for the proposed regulations. Butler said in a brief statement that he is confident enforcement efforts will continue.

The American Meat Institute, a lobbying group that opposed Butler''s reforms, declined to comment on his resignation.