USDA ends ‘politicized’ food security reports
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has announced it will stop publishing its annual Household Food Security Reports, which the agency criticized as “redundant, costly, politicized, and fear-mongering.” These reports,initiated under President Bill Clinton,tracked food insecurity trends in the United States. The USDA stated that despite a notable increase in SNAP (Supplemental nutrition Assistance Program) spending-over 87% between 2019 and 2023-food insecurity rates have remained largely unchanged.The most recent report,from 2023,showed that 13.5% of U.S. households experienced food insecurity, with 5.1% facing very low food security, consistent with previous years.
The decision comes in the wake of legislative changes introduced during President Donald Trump’s governance, which implemented work requirements aimed at reducing participation in entitlement programs such as SNAP and Medicaid. This is expected to result in millions losing benefits, with an estimated 2.4 million fewer people receiving food stamps monthly. The USDA plans to focus instead on other timely and accurate data sources to meet its statutory obligations.
USDA ends ‘politicized’ food security reports
The Department of Agriculture announced it will stop publishing reports on food security in the United States, which the agency said have consistently been rife with “liberal fodder.”
In a press release, the USDA trashed the annual reports, which began under former President Bill Clinton, as “redundant, costly, politicized, and extraneous studies [that] do nothing more than fear monger.”
“The U.S. Department of Agriculture announced the termination of future Household Food Security Reports,” the agency said. “Trends in the prevalence of food insecurity have remained virtually unchanged, regardless of an over 87% increase in SNAP spending between 2019-2023. USDA will continue to prioritize statutory requirements and where necessary, use the bevy of more timely and accurate data sets available to it.”
The most recent report available is from 2023 and found that 13.5% of households in the nation were food insecure, which the USDA defines as having “limited or uncertain access to adequate food.” Of that percentage, 5.1% of households reported very low food security, or disrupted eating patterns and reduced food intake. Notably, that percentage went unchanged from the previous year.
Reported cases of very low food security over the past two decades have also largely hovered near 4%-5%, with a peak of nearly 6% in 2008. Over the same time frame, general food insecurity has stayed between 11% and 15%.
The move from the USDA comes after President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” included some changes to entitlement programs, particularly SNAP and Medicaid.
The legislation mainly added work requirements, which are expected to reduce participation in the programs.
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For SNAP, the largest food security program in the country, an average of 2.4 million people each month are no longer set to receive food stamps, the Congressional Budget Office estimated in August.
SNAP provides assistance to about 42 million people each month.
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