Is the primary focus of the USDA agricultural programs?
Farm and commodity programs equal only 18% of the 2018 USDA budget. Conservation and forestry accounts for 7% of the total USDA budget. Rural development, research, food safety, marketing and regulatory, and departmental management accounts for 6% of the budget. The primary focus of the USDA’s budget lies with the food assistance and nutrition programs. These account for nearly 69% of the budget. These programs include the Supplemental Nutrition Program or SNAP (formerly known as Food Stamps); Women, Infants and Children or WIC; and school lunch/breakfast programs. USDA also has many programs that provide benefits to all Americans, ranging from environmental enhancement through its conservation and forestry programs to assisting rural communities provide critical services such as water, sewer treatment, electricity and telecommunications as well as building schools, churches and rural businesses through its rural development programs.
