Farm bill should expand SNAP, test fruit and vegetable incentives — task force
Congress should expand SNAP, the premiere U.S. anti-hunger program, to all American territories in the new farm bill and test whether benefits tied to the purchase of fruits and vegetables would improve the diets of SNAP households, a high-powered task force proposed on Tuesday. The recommendations could add billions of dollars a year to SNAP outlays at a time when conservative Republicans want to cut its cost.
A salad, a glass of wine, a bit of time and U.S. will be a food importer
The American preference for fresh foods year-round, often washed down with a glass of wine—or something stronger—will drive a $100 billion increase in food and ag imports in the years ahead, according to the Agriculture Department. It would turn the United States into a net importer of food in the long term and question the proud sentiment in farm country that America feeds the world.
Trade war could cost U.S. fruit and nut industries $3 billion a year
The U.S.'s current trade war expands beyond China—India, Mexico and Turkey also have placed tariffs on U.S. fruits and nuts. The cumulative effect of the tariffs could cost the U.S. fruit and nut industries $2.64 billion per year directly and an additional $700 million by reducing prices in alternative markets, says a study by the Agricultural Issues Center at the University of California.