Happy Friday, and welcome to Food Fix. It’s hard to believe, but this is the 225th edition of this newsletter! For anyone new around here: I’m Helena Bottemiller Evich, and I’ve been reporting on food policy in Washington for 15 years. If you’re curious about why I launched Food Fix, start here. You can also read my bio.
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Alright, let’s get to it –
Helena
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Why frozen federal funds are raising alarm bells
Democrats from the House and Senate agriculture committees on Thursday wrote to the Trump administration expressing deep concern over apparently frozen federal grants that are supposed to be dispersed by USDA.
The congressional letters crossed my desk just as I was being flooded with messages from all corners of the food system asking if I knew what was going on with USDA (and also FDA) funding. A controversial White House Office of Management and Budget memo to freeze grants and loans had been temporarily blocked by the courts, and the administration rescinded it under pressure, so why were funds still frozen days later? Does Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) effort have anything to do with this?
Unfortunately, we do not know for sure. USDA is not responding to press inquiries, which means they are not answering questions (not good!) In lieu of having concrete answers, I’m going to do my best to explain why this wonky funding issue is raising alarm — and how this relates to growing concerns that we could be headed for a constitutional crisis.
Follow the grants: First, a word about grants: Federal agencies dole out billions in grants each year to entities across the country to support work that Congress has generally deemed worthy of investment. For USDA, examples include things like paying farmers to improve conservation practices on their land, paying scientists for agricultural research at universities, and paying groups for food safety training for farmers. This past week, I heard from a food hub working to aggregate local food in the mid-Atlantic, a group in the Northeast working to increase demand for organic milk, a non-profit in the Midwest procuring local, fresh foods for k-12 schools and a food pantry in the Pacific Northwest. These are just a few examples, but suffice it to say, a lot of people are freaking out.
Right now, many groups that have various contracts for federal grants aren’t seeing money they were expecting and it’s causing panic — in part because no one seems to know when or if the spigot will turn back on.
Not having a federal grant show up, in some cases, means not making payroll, not paying farmers for fresh produce or milk — the ripple effects can be substantial. And even if you’re reading this thinking: Whatever, the government shouldn’t be paying for all of this anyway, that’s certainly something that can and should be debated, but all of these grants were the result of contracts the government already made with funds Congress already appropriated.
Murky money woes: There’s probably a few things going on here, and they may not all be related to the controversial (and now rescinded) White House funding memo. There are rumors swirling that USDA has, at least to some extent, frozen Commodity Credit Corporation funding — a Depression-era slush fund aimed at stabilizing U.S. agriculture that is used for all sorts of things. The first Trump administration used it to pay farmers tens of billions of dollars to make up for Donald Trump’s trade war. The Biden administration used it to stand up climate-smart farming pilot projects (these funds are now frozen, too.)
On Thursday, USDA issued an internal memo on terminating work and contracts related to “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI), clarifying that several other phrases, such as “environmental justice” and “underserved communities” should come under review as well. The memo, a copy of which was sent to me by numerous people, says: “For both DEI and Environmental Justice activities, you are directed to review, take steps to remove language, and prepare to modify/terminate awards.” I do not know how broadly this memo would affect USDA grants, but it certainly could explain why some funds are currently held up.
The DOGE factor: Many of my sources are also wondering if DOGE is affecting payment systems at USDA, but we just do not know anything right now. I’m hearing DOGE has been present at USDA headquarters, but I haven’t found anyone who knows what these folks are working on. There’s speculation that certain officials have been locked out of USDA payment systems, but I have not confirmed this. (Email me or find me on Signal if you know what’s going on here! helena@foodfix.co).
DOGE last week emailed more than 2 million federal workers across the country and offered them essentially a buyout, though the legitimacy of this offer was immediately questioned. The email from DOGE had the subject line: “Fork in the Road” — which is the same subject line of an email Musk sent to Twitter employees after he acquired the company and began mass layoffs.
We do not know how many USDA or FDA employees might have agreed to take these buyouts, but there are a lot of essential functions within these agencies to consider. Many Americans likely would not care much if certain office workers left their federal jobs, but they may care if infant formula plant inspectors left en masse. Under federal law, meat plants can’t operate without USDA food safety inspectors on site. USDA also employs thousands of firefighters to respond to wildfires, and so on.
In recent days, there have been headlines about DOGE dismantling the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), though there are serious questions about whether the executive branch has the authority to do this. There are reports that the Education Department is next to be slashed. The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that the White House is preparing an executive order to fire thousands of workers at HHS, which would include FDA and CDC, but the White House has denied this.
DOGE has reportedly landed at NIH, too, but I haven’t heard yet about FDA. Despite the DOGE entries, there have been some signs of normalcy inside the federal agencies in recent days. Meeting requests to outside groups have started to go out, and regular email updates on foodborne illness investigations have resumed as the administration’s communications freeze appears to be thawing somewhat.
Three branches: Amid all of this activity, federal courts have stepped in to at least temporarily block both the DOGE buyouts and the funding freeze, but we do not yet know if the administration will heed these orders. Having so much funding still frozen is raising some big questions: If a court has ordered the Trump administration to unfreeze federal grants and loans, and it ultimately does not comply, what then? Where is Congress in all of this? Under the Constitution, we have three branches of government with checks and balances for a reason. Congress has the power of the purse.
Perhaps this is all temporary. USDA officials may be taking extra time to review contracted grants that will ultimately still be paid out. It’s possible there’s just general disruption happening a few weeks into a government transition. On the flip side, if the executive branch starts flouting Congress and the courts, we’d be in grave territory. Indeed, it seems like we are at a fork in the road.
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What I’m reading
New bird flu variant in cattle adds to concerns about federal response under Trump (NPR). “A variant of H5N1 bird flu that has circulated widely in wild birds — and in several instances led to severe illness in humans — has turned up in dairy cattle for the first time,” reports Will Stone. “The findings were relayed in a short update from the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Wednesday which traced the new variant back to dairy herds in Nevada. While the implications aren’t entirely clear, scientists say it’s a concerning development that could mark a new chapter in the outbreak. The news comes at a time when a pause in routine communication from federal health agencies has made it hard to discern exactly what’s going on. The variant, known as D1.1 genotype, belongs to a different genetic lineage than what’s fueled the infections in dairy cattle over the past year. Scientists believe a single spillover event, from birds to cattle, in the Texas Panhandle in late 2023 seeded the current nationwide outbreak. But this new finding points to at least one additional instance of the virus hopping into dairy cattle.”
Buying candy, soda with food stamps banned under proposed Kansas bill (Kansas Reflector). “Purchasing soda and candy with food stamps would no longer be permitted under a proposed Kansas bill, but whether the federal government would accept the move is unclear,” reports Anna Kaminski. “Previous efforts to request waivers from the rules of the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, under which food stamps are funded and administered to states, have failed. A request from Maine in 2018 was rejected during the first Trump administration. President Donald Trump initially didn’t support it, Roy Lenardson of Opportunity Solutions Project, the lobbying extension of the conservative think tank Foundation for Government Accountability, told legislators Tuesday. Lenardson pointed to Trump health secretary nominee Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has a vision to ‘make America healthy again.’ Restricting soft drink and candy purchases with food stamps goes with that, he said.”
Ban of harmful school lunch ingredients urged by MAHA supporters with new law proposal (Fox News). “A bill in Arizona is seeking to make school lunches healthy again by banning ultra-processed food,” reports Ashley DiMella. “House Bill 2164, titled the Arizona Healthy Schools Act, was introduced by Representative Leo Biasiucci and inspired by RFK Jr.’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) movement. The bill would ban any food that contains potassium bromate, propylparaben, titanium dioxide, brominated vegetable oil, yellow dyes 5 and 6, blue dyes 1 and 2, green dye 3, and red dyes 3 and 40. ‘The legislature finds that ultra-processed, industrially manufactured, nutrient-depleted food with synthetic additives is undernourishing minors at public schools and contributing to childhood obesity,’ the bill reads. ‘Any taxpayer-funded meal or snack program offered to minors at public schools in this state should be nutritious and made primarily of whole, minimally processed plant or animal products.’”
Trump is inheriting an environmental disaster (The Atlantic). “In Wisconsin, where late last year Donald Trump said at a campaign stop, “I’m an environmentalist … I want clean air and clean water—really clean water,” many people want that too,” writes Zoë Schlanger. “Like Americans across the country, many Wisconsinites have in recent years come to understand that they have been drinking water contaminated by highly toxic ‘forever chemicals,’ compounds known as PFAS, for decades. This is a challenge for Trump the environmentalist, whose administration is widely expected to gut many environmental regulations and has already suspended work that would have put limits on PFAS. Yet Lee Zeldin, now the EPA’s administrator, said in his confirmation hearing last month that PFAS would be a “top priority” for the agency, and as a member of Congress, he sided with Democrats to back rules that would limit the chemicals in drinking water and make polluters pay for cleanup. PFAS are the rare environmental issue that might evoke the bipartisan zeitgeist in which Congress passed the Clean Water Act in 1972. Like the environmental disasters of the 1970s, this one is alarming enough that politicians who might otherwise oppose regulation want the government to do something about it.”
Weight loss pill could replace injections, would be transformative for millions (WRAL). “A breakthrough in weight loss medication is on the horizon. While popular drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy are only available as injections, drugmaker Novo Nordisk is working on a more convenient option: A pill,” writes Shaun Gallagher. “Novo Nordisk already makes semaglutide, a tablet used to treat patients with Type 2 diabetes. However, they are seeking regulatory approval for the tablet to be used as a weight loss treatment like Ozempic and Wegovy. Many who would benefit from the drug find the idea of a weekly injection a turnoff. Novo Nordisk’s recent announcement that Wegovy in a tablet proved as effective as the shots could open the benefits of the drug to many more people.”
Ozempic for the rich, body positivity for the poor (Psychology Today). “In a world increasingly shaped by social media trends and medical advancements, the conversation around body image, health, and weight has taken on new dimensions,” writes Nafees Alam. “On the one hand, we see the rise of weight-loss drugs like Ozempic, hailed as a revolutionary aid for those who can afford it. Conversely, the body positivity movement encourages self-acceptance and challenges traditional beauty standards—yet it is often disproportionately directed at those with fewer financial resources. This dichotomy exposes an uncomfortable truth: Societal attitudes toward health and weight are deeply influenced by socioeconomic status. The cost of Ozempic can exceed $1,000 per month without insurance coverage, making it mainly accessible to the wealthy. The message is this: If you can afford it, you should lose weight; if you can’t, love yourself as you are.”
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