Members of the House and Senate Agriculture committees are proposing to move the Food for Peace program from the U.S. Agency for International Development to the Department of Agriculture.
The 70-year-old foreign food aid program faces an uncertain future after the Trump administration paused USAID funding and stalled commodities in transit to feed people around the globe. USAID's inspector general estimated $489 million in food assistance is at risk because of the gutting of USAID's staff and confusion about a stop work order.
House Ag Committee Chair Glenn "GT" Thompson, R-Pa., and Reps. Tracey Mann, R-Kan., Rick Crawford, R-Ark, Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., and David Rouzer, R-N.C., joined Sens. Jerry Moran, R-Kan., and John Hoeven, R-N.D., in introducing bills in the House and Senate to put the program under USDA.
It’s easy to be “in the know” about what’s happening in Washington, D.C. Sign up for a FREE month of Agri-Pulse news! Simply click here
“By moving Food for Peace to USDA, the program can continue to equip American producers to serve hungry people while providing more transparency and efficiency as to how taxpayer dollars are stewarded,” Mann said.
Crawford noted that USDA already runs the Food for Progress and McGovern-Dole Food for Education international food assistance programs, which makes "USDA a natural home for Food for Peace."
More than 50 organizations supported the legislation, including the American Soybean Association, North American Millers’ Association and National Sorghum Producers, among others.
For more news, go to www.Agri-Pulse.com.
