“Big Food and Ag” has donated more heavily, by almost a 2-1 margin, to Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton than Republican nominee Donald Trump, says Mother Jones, although Trump began catching up in August when his electoral prospects brightened. “As for Trump, his most notable agribiz supporters hail from the meat industry.”
Campaign donations from the agribusiness sector totaled $2.4 million through Aug. 31, said Mother Jones, which analyzed donations with the help of the Center for Responsive Politics. The total was a small part of fundraising for the candidates.
“Some of Clinton’s biggest benefactors hail from firms associated with organic foods,” said Mother Jones. “Big name food processors General Mills, Nestle and Kraft chipped in, as did grain traders Cargill and Continental Grain; and Roll Global, the California nut/pomegranate giant owned by the potent Resnick family.” Donations also came from the biotech sector.
Trump got $45,700 in donations from the meat industry; the largest was $10,800 from poultry processor Mountaire Corp.