WASHINGTON (May 21, 2024) This week, the House Agriculture Committee will consider the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024. This comprehensive legislation is instrumental in our nation’s domestic and international food security and nutrition policy over the next five years. While we appreciate that this legislation includes provisions that many Alliance member organizations support – such as the investments in nutrition incentive programs and the repeal of the SNAP drug felony ban – the Alliance has concerns that the committee’s bill in its current form contains key policies that will increase food insecurity in the U.S. and make it harder for our partners to address the global food crisis around the world.
Specifically, the Alliance is concerned that the current bill will restrict USDA’s ability to ensure that the Thrifty Food Plan accurately reflects the real cost of purchasing and preparing meals for families with limited incomes. SNAP benefits would fail to keep pace with the actual cost of buying healthy and affordable food. With 40 million low-income individuals relying on SNAP and the rising cost of food, it is crucial that the Thrifty Food Plan is not evaluated based on cost neutrality. SNAP must remain a program that enables low-income families to achieve food and nutrition security.
Additionally, the Alliance also opposes provisions in the bill that limit global food security and development programming. Specifically, the Alliance is concerned that the current bill restricts flexibility in the Food for Peace program and limits its ability to build resilience and enable communities to become more self-sufficient.
“From the beginning, the Alliance to End Hunger has urged the House Agriculture Committee to pass a Farm Bill that puts us on the path to ending hunger and malnutrition,” states Eric Mitchell, president of the Alliance to End Hunger. “While the Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2024 currently fails to accomplish this goal, it is not too late for us to continue our work together to develop legislation that meets the continuing pressing needs in the U.S. and around the world.”
“We look forward to continuing to work with the House Agriculture Committee to ensure that the farm bill is a legislative vehicle that promotes equity, accessibility, and affordability in federal nutrition programs; and promotes an end to hunger and malnutrition in the U.S. and around the globe.”
