The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has cut funding for two programs, which together totaled over $1billion in grants to schools and food banks for the purpose of purchasing food from local farms and ranchers.

Within this amount, $660 million was designated for the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program, which provided financial support to schools and child care centers. However, this program is scheduled for elimination.

The remaining funds formed part of the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, which supplied resources to local food banks and other associated organizations. The USDA has defrosted funds for ongoing agreements but has scrapped a second funding round for the 2025 fiscal year.

In a statement, Shannon Gleave, the President of the School Nutrition Association, expressed concern, stating, “These proposals would cause millions of children to lose access to free school meals at a time when working families are struggling with rising food costs. At the same time, understaffed school nutrition teams, who are working hard to improve menus and increase home-cooked meal options, would be burdened with laborious and expensive paperwork due to new, inefficient bureaucratic requirements.”

Late last year, the USDA announced $1.13 billion in funding for both programs. State officials were informed of the cuts on Friday.

These cuts coincide with Donald Trump’s second presidential term, which has seen vigorous cuts to federal spending and the imposition of tariffs, impacting food organizations and farmers, leading to layoffs and investment halts.

Food banks have been experiencing increased demand amid rising food prices, while Republicans in Congress are advocating for significant cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Snap).

A USDA spokesperson informed Politico that funding for the targeted programs will end after a 60-day notice. They also noted that these programs were established by Joe Biden’s executive orders and “no longer align with the agency’s objectives.”

The spokesperson added that other ongoing agreements still have significant financial resources and will remain in effect until the end of their performance period.

Maura Healey, the Governor of Massachusetts, criticized the Trump administration for cutting programs which would have supplied $12 million in food-related funding to schools and food banks in her state.

In a press release, she commented, “Trump and his billionaire advisor on spending reduction, Elon Musk, have declared that feeding children and supporting local farmers are no longer priorities, which is just the most recent harmful cut with tangible effects on families across Massachusetts.”

She added, “There’s nothing rational about this decision. Trump and Musk are withholding critical funding, defying court orders, and it’s our children, farmers, and small businesses that are paying the price.”