Half of California water goes to alfalfa feedstock for beef. Is beef a luxury snack food? It probably should be treated as such.
The world would revolt if beef disappeared.
Or perhaps US would just have to revise the beef quotas it sets on foreign exporters. A lot of California farm production is designed with costs borne by the public and profits kept private.
It wouldn't stay competitive without a mount of legislative work, quotas and tariffs.