At Happy Hollow Farm, a small, 16-acre operation in central Missouri, Liz Glaznack grows a variety of vegetables, including organic carrots, Swiss chard, radish and beets.
Some of these vegetables go to local distributors where they are boxed, and meat and dairy products are also produced in the state and delivered to low-income people. Other vegetables are sent to the school district, which typically lacks budget to serve fresh, locally grown produce for students.
For Graznak, about $240,000, or about a quarter of the farm's annual revenue came from two federal programs that supported these efforts.
This week she learned that the Agriculture Department had suddenly eliminated the program. In an interview with Fox News Tuesday, farm secretary Brooke L. Rollins called the program “essential” and “a left-wing effort to continue taxpayer dollars that are not necessary.”
Now, Glaznak fears that her small farm is in danger. Like many farmers, she is dependent on loans and is worried about the way she pays the $750,000 she owes.
“My farm production has more than doubled in size in the last two and a half years due to these programs and this revenue,” Graznak said. “That money was supporting the growth of my farm. I'm leveraged so high, that's scary. I'm struggling with it now.”
The Biden administration has created two programs during the coronavirus pandemic to strengthen its local supply chains. They provided the state with a $1 billion grant, and then made money available to school districts, food banks and distribution hubs to purchase produce, meat, fish, dairy and other minimally processed foods from over 8,000 local farmers.
In December, the Agriculture Department announced another $1.1 billion tranche of funding for the program. Local Food Purchase Support Cooperative Agreement and local food program program. However, the Trump administration informed the winners last week that it had decided to end both.
Money for the program came through the Department's Commodity Credit Corporation, a pot of money replenished annually. The Agriculture Secretary has broad discretion to revoke its funds and use it for purposes consistent with the administration's purposes. The first Trump administration used the funds to pay farmers damaged by the trade war with China, while the Biden administration spent it on promoting climate-friendly agricultural practices and local food systems.
A spokesman for the agency said in a statement that the program's sunset marked “a return to a long-term financial responsibility initiative” and “the era of community is over.”
However, some participants expressed surprise at the sudden discard of the program, saying it appears to intersect with many of the Trump administration's priorities. The administration vowed to support farmers, encourage Americans to eat healthier foods, and encourage the state to oversee and distribute funds.
“These were Republican-backed programs in many states,” said Katy Nixon, director of the Kansas City Food Hub, an organization that has linked local farmers like Glaznack to community programs and schools. Last week, the group was set up outside a diner in Stockton, Missouri, and distributed free boxes of fresh food and produce. According to Food Hub, about half of the recipients are elderly and you'll find it difficult to trek towards the big city to access the food bank.
In a statement, GT Thompson, chairman of the Pennsylvania Republicans and House Agriculture Committee, said: These were not intended to be permanent, especially when the long-standing farm bill programmes already provided food aid to support farmers, families and rural communities. ”
The Kansas City Food Hub estimates that Missouri will lose nearly $20 million from the two programs. “To get notifications on Friday afternoon, without any prediction,” Nixon said. “It's already the end of the season. Farmers have already begun preparing for them.”
Tom McDougall, founder and CEO of 4P Foods, a Virginia food distributor and delivery company, said the local food program is different from the family box created by the first Trump administration. The program delivered 170 million boxes of free fresh food to Americans in need from farmers whose markets have been disrupted by the pandemic.
“These programs are not handouts,” he said. “These are investments in the future of the American fast food system, right? And it's a system where family farms can thrive again.”
If the local food program had not been cancelled, they would provide $3 million for 4P food, purchasing produce, meat, dairy and other products from 200 farmers and producers in the Mid-Atlantic region and distribute them to food banks and schools. Without the funding, McDougal hopes that some farms will cut back on orders and stop working fully with others.
For organizations that provide food directly to children and families, elimination of the programme could result in fewer healthy meals and fewer purchases from local farmers.
Food Banks in Central and Eastern North Carolina will receive $2 million in 2025 to purchase fresh fruits, vegetables, beef, pork and eggs from two local growers and producers.
“We're excited to be able to help you get the most out of our business,” said Amy Bellos, president of Food Bank.
The community needs remained high, with 100,000 more people using the food bank than last year in 2023, Belos said. The elimination of local food programs could force charities like Food Banks to restrict the purchase of local produce.
At Capistrano Unified School District in Southern California, local nutrition supervisor Kristin Hilleman said the local food program will cover $239,000 purchases from local farmers.
Hillman used his previous funds to replace cookies and other processed desserts for hydroponic lettuce for sandwiches, beef for burger pate, magenta dragon fruit and organic apples. “It's the whole Maha!” she said, referring to the “re-to-be-health-again” mantra of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., secretary of Health and Human Services, who has replaced ultra-processing foods in American diets with a top priority.
Without the funding, Hillman said she would need to reevaluate plans for the next school year and refrain from purchasing them or cut them elsewhere.
The Great Valley School District in Malvern, Pennsylvania, is expected to receive between $3,000 and $5,000 for the school year, estimated by the district's foodservice supervisor Nicole Taylor. That amount is apparently small compared to a typical food budget, and Taylor said she could “buy Americans” by serving seven schools locally grown apples and pears for six months.
McDougal of Virginia Food Hub has confirmed that canceling the program is a privilege of the Trump administration.
But “the government has the option to make now,” he said. “What do you want your children and families to eat? Where do you want that food to come from? What kind of agricultural economy will support it as a result?”
