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Bush to trim agribusiness subsidies

WASHINGTON, Feb. 5 (UPI) -- The White House wants deep cuts in U.S. farm and commodity programs in the new budget and is proposing enforceable caps on subsidies to agribusinesses.

Administration officials say such limits will help reduce the federal budget deficit and introduce efficiencies into the farm economy that will benefit consumers, reported the New York Times.

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Most subsidies, which can reach $1 million per year, are paid to large agricultural corporations growing cotton and rice in the south.

Bush's bid to cut farmers' access to public money is supported by unlikely allies. Kenneth Cook, president of the Environmental Working Group said smaller subsidies for agribusiness would cut pressure on Congress to reduce conservation. Third World countries, long embittered by the effect of subsidies on their farmers, hailed Bush's proposals.

Meanwhile, Congress' investigative arm said last year that too many U.S. farmers use many "schemes or devices" to circumvent existing payment limits. Economist Brian M. Riedl of the Heritage Foundation said stricter payment limits were needed because farm subsidies had become "America's largest corporate welfare program."

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