$489 million worth of food at risk of spoilage amid US funding freeze: Report

• Nearly $500 million in food aid is reportedly at risk of spoilage as it sits on ships, in ports and at warehouses. That’s after the Trump administration froze funding for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
• The findings come from a new report on Monday from USAID’s inspector general.
• The inspector general warned of the risks of “safeguarding and distribution” of $8.2 billion in unspent humanitarian aid after the White House pulled nearly all of USAID’s workforce off of the job worldwide.

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Nearly $500 million in food aid is reportedly at risk of spoilage as it sits on ships, in ports and at warehouses after the Trump administration froze funding for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

The findings come from a new report on Monday, Feb. 10, from USAID’s inspector general.

Why is food aid in limbo?

The inspector general warned of the risks of “safeguarding and distribution” of more than $8 billion in unspent humanitarian aid after the White House pulled nearly all of USAID’s workforce off the job worldwide amid a review of U.S. foreign aid programs.

A U.S. federal judge on Friday, Feb. 7, bocked the Trump administration from placing 2,200 agency employees on administrative leave, but that is only a fraction of the agency’s workforce.

What does USAID do?

USAID provides food, medicine and essential services to more than 100 countries. It buys food directly from American farmers and agricultural businesses, which provide around 40% of global food assistance, according to a 2021 report from the U.S. Congressional Research Service.

How does it impact U.S. farmers and agriculture?

Some U.S. farmers are concerned about their income taking a hit with purchases from the agency in jeopardy, including sorghum farmers in Kansas, according to The Topeka Capital-Journal.

USAID historically buys food such as wheat, soybeans, sorghum and split peas from the American agricultural industry.

How much food is waiting to be delivered?

Currently, $489 million worth of food is in limbo “at ports, in transit, and in warehouses at risk of spoilage,” due to “unanticipated storage needs, and diversion,” according to the inspector general’s report.

The report also notes that an additional 500,000 metric tons of food are currently on ships or ready to be shipped to countries in need.

What will happen if it is not delivered?

The CEO of Spoonfuls, which repurposes excess food from grocery stores and other companies for aid organizations in Massachusetts, told CBS News Boston, that if the food is not delivered, it will end “up in a landfill.”

What is the bigger picture?

President Donald Trump and Elon Musk, the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), have taken aim at USAID as they work to cut trillions of dollars in what they’ve deemed to be government waste. Musk has said USAID should be shuttered and called it “beyond repair.”