USDA ends $1 billion for schools, food banks to buy food from local suppliers

March 13 (UPI) -- Schools and local food banks will lose about $1.1 billion from the U.S. Department of Agriculture for the purchase of food from local farms, ranchers and producers.

The agency will be marking a return to "long-term, fiscally responsible initiatives," instead of "short-term plans with no plan for longevity," the agency said in a statement.

Two programs bought food from local farms and ranchers.

They are $660 million for the Local Food for Schools and Child Care Cooperative Agreement Program from local farmers, ranchers and fishers to schools; and about $470 million for the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, which helped fill food banks with products from small farmers within 400 miles.

On Friday, state officials were notified of USDA's decision to end the LFS program for this year. More than 40 states participate in the program.

USDA said it was unfreezing funds for existing LFPA agreements but did not plan to carry out a second round of funding for fiscal year 2025.

The cuts are among President Donald Trump's effort to streamline the federal government and cut costs, including through firings.

They are coming at a time when schools are already "really struggling to absorb the rising cost of food and labor," Diane Pratt-Heavner, a spokesperson for the School Nutrition Association, a nonprofit that represents 50,000 school lunch personnel, told The Washington Post.

"It's a real loss, not only to the schools, but to the entire community, because it's a loss of funds for local growers and producers, it's a loss of education for the kids."

During the early days of the pandemic, 6.7% of U.S. households reported they used a food pantry in 2020, compared with 4.4% in 2019, according to a USDA study.

"The covid era is over -- USDA's approach to nutrition programs will reflect that reality moving forward," a spokesperson said to The Washington Post in criticizing the Biden administration's policies.

In December, Biden announced a funding expansion of $1.13 billion for the programs.

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, a Democrat, said her state would lose $12 million.

"Donald Trump and Elon Musk have declared that feeding children and supporting local farmers are no longer 'priorities,' and it's just the latest terrible cut with real impact on families across Massachusetts," Healey said in a statement.

Massachusetts provided local healthy food to child care programs and schools from local farmers and small businesses.

In Scottsdale, Ariz., the school district will lose $100,000, which represents about 2% of the school district's roughly $6 million in annual spending on food.

"It's a pretty big hit, and that's mostly fresh fruits and vegetables," Patti Bilbrey, director of nutrition services at the Scottsdale Unified School District, told CBS News. "It wasn't just about keeping food costs low - it meant supporting your community and your local farmers in your state."