Recent Executive Orders freezing foreign assistance are taking a multiple-billion toll on U.S. farmers. That’s because USAID is serious when it says its aid is “from the American people.” The agency has historically been one of the largest buyers of U.S.-grown crops, spending around $2.1 billion annually to provide food aid worldwide. And with crippling cuts to key UN agencies who rely on U.S. agriculture for global humanitarian assistance, American farmers are now left without some of their most dependable sources of income – and questions about the future of their livelihoods.
Because the fact is: foreign assistance programs feed America’s heartland just as much as America’s heartland feeds the world.
Here’s how.
Foreign assistance programs feed America’s heartland just as much as America’s heartland feeds the world.
A Lifeline for American Farmers
For decades, foreign aid programs have served as a critical market for American agricultural products. In 2023 alone, USAID purchased over one million metric tons of food from U.S. producers, stabilizing domestic commodity prices and supporting farm incomes. In the same year, $2 billion in food aid was procured from U.S. growers in bilateral aid to food insecure nations, while hundreds of millions were gleaned from U.S. farmers through UN agencies like the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Food Programme (WFP). This makes the U.S. the leading supplier of food assistance in the world and ensures a consistent demand for crops that allows farmers to plan production with relative certainty. With purchases halted, our growers are now scrambling to find new buyers.
And the timing couldn’t be worse as farmers enter the planting season, looking to future sales to recoup their expenses. As one Virginia farmer put it, “We just put in the ground between $75,000 to $100,000 in seed. We put it in the ground, and I don’t know if I’m going to get it back.” Without the stability provided by international food aid programs, many farmers are left in financial distress, struggling to recover their investments.
The Ripple Effect on Rural Communities
The impact of the aid freeze extends far beyond individual farmers. As the backbone of many rural economies, a downturn in farming income means fewer tax dollars for infrastructure, schools, hospitals and emergency services. And fewer farms mean limited supply, less competition and higher grocery prices for American consumers. That widespread economic hardship translates directly to rural poverty.
According to Rob Larew, president of the National Farmers Union, the funding freeze is especially harmful for small family farmers, who often operate on razor-thin profit margins. “Farmers take on an immense amount of financial risk to put a crop into the ground or raise a herd of livestock, only to be wiped out by a natural disaster, rising costs or collapsing markets,” Larew noted. The loss of food aid markets adds another layer of uncertainty to an already precarious industry.
The Role of International Organizations in Agricultural Stability
In addition to critical food procurement, there’s also the essential – now uncertain – role international organizations play in supporting American farmers through trade, inspection and health regulations. Agencies like FAO and the World Trade Organization (WTO) help maintain trade stability, ensuring that U.S. farmers have access to global markets through agreements like WTO’s Agreement on Agriculture and FAO’s International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Additionally, UN-backed climate initiatives provide research and resources for climate-smart agricultural practices, aiding American farmers in mitigating risks posed by extreme weather and soil degradation. Reduced funding for agricultural sustainability programs means fewer resources for bolstering climate resilience.
Then there’s the very immediate avian flu concerns, impacting American farmers and families nationwide. That’s where U.S. engagement with the World Health Organization, which the U.S. recently withdrew from by Executive Order, has historically been vital for the poultry industry. An H5N1 outbreak that started in 2022 has killed or culled more than 156 million birds in the U.S. and sent egg prices skyrocketing, which now average a record $8 a dozen.
When the virus gained a foothold among dairy cows last year, spawning a different, more aggressive strain tied to severe human infections, WHO intensified its efforts alongside the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Organization for Animal Health (WOAH) to track cases, assess risks and prevent human infections through surveillance and containment measures, as well as engage with American pharmaceutical companies to develop updated vaccines and ensure sufficient stockpiles of antivirals. Importantly, because WHO is doing this work with an eye toward the parallel threat of antimicrobial resistance, their efforts are as mindful of keeping antibiotic load limited as they are to ensuring vaccines are accessible.
Unfortunately, following U.S. withdrawal from WHO, communication among key agencies has been interrupted. Again, it’s American farmers who are left in the lurch.
Financial Uncertainty and the Future of Farming
The fact is, foreign assistance programs specifically and multilateral engagement writ large may send food and expertise around the globe, but they also bring billions directly into Americans’ pocketbooks through procurement and through containment measures like avoiding disease and creating more draught-resistant crops. These programs are a stabilizing force abroad and at home, allowing the U.S. to contribute to global humanitarian efforts and build strong and stable economies.
And without continued investment in foreign assistance, the U.S. government may just find itself with a growing need to provide domestic assistance to the tens of thousands of farmers whose fields may soon lay fallow.
Without continued investment in foreign assistance, the U.S. government may just find itself with a growing need to provide domestic assistance to the tens of thousands of farmers whose fields may soon lay fallow.
