A new partnership between the USDA and 31 states will “help lower food costs for American families while also giving farmers and ranchers more and better options,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack at the White House on Wednesday. The Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission said they would give greater scrutiny to mergers, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development said it would take action against “junk” fees that drive up the cost of applications to rent an apartment.
The actions were announced during a meeting of the White House competition council that came two years after President Biden signed an executive order directing federal agencies to encourage competition in the economy. “Folks are tired of being played for suckers,” said Biden during the meeting.
Vilsack said the new Agricultural Competition Partnership with 31 states and the District of Columbia would combine federal and state expertise in pursuing anticompetitive market structures. The USDA said it would leverage funds to support complex cases along with research and academic work on the issue.
“Today we’re excited to announce the launch of the historic agricultural competition in partnership with 32 bipartisan state attorneys general [to] crack down on anticompetitive and anti-consumer practices that raise prices at the grocery store and deprive farmers of a fair return,” said Vilsack. “This is going to help lower food costs for American families while also giving farmers and ranchers more and better options.”
A White House fact sheet on the new administration initiative is available here.