USDA cancels $1B in local food purchasing for schools, food banks

Politico

11-03-2025

The Agriculture Department has axed two programs that gave schools and food banks money to buy food from local farms and ranchers, halting more than $1 billion in federal spending.
Roughly $660 million that schools and child care facilities were counting on to purchase food from nearby farms through the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program in 2025 has been canceled, according to the School Nutrition Association.
State officials were notified Friday of USDA's decision to end the LFS program for this year. More than 40 states had signed agreements to participate in previous years, according to SNA and several state agencies.
The Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, which supports food banks and other feeding organizations, has also been cut. USDA notified states that it was unfreezing funds for existing LFPA agreements but did not plan to carry out a second round of funding for fiscal year 2025.
In a statement, a USDA spokesperson confirmed that funding, previously announced last October, 'is no longer available and those agreements will be terminated following 60-day notification.'
The spokesperson added: 'These programs, created under the former Administration via Executive authority, no longer effectuate the goals of the agency. LFPA and LFPA Plus agreements that were in place prior to LFPA 25, which still have substantial financial resources remaining, will continue to be in effect for the remainder of the period of performance.'
The Biden administration expanded the spending for both programs to build a more resilient food supply chain that didn't just rely on major food companies. Last year, USDA announced more than $1 billion in additional funding for the programs through the Commodity Credit Corporation, a New Deal-era USDA fund for buying agricultural commodities.
The Trump administration's move to halt the programs comes as school nutrition officials are becoming increasingly anxious about affording healthy food with the current federal reimbursement rate for meals. As food costs have risen in the last few years, more people are turning to food banks and other feeding organizations to supplement their increased grocery bills.
Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, a Democrat, castigated the administration for the decision, noting that her state would lose $12 million it planned to dole out to school districts.
'Donald Trump and Elon Musk have declared that feeding children and supporting local farmers are no longer 'priorities,' and it's just the latest terrible cut with real impact on families across Massachusetts,' Healey said in a statement.