ABOLISHUSDA

Department of Agriculture

Welfare for agribusiness, with a food pyramid on the side.

Official story

What they claim to do

Supports farmers, ensures food safety and runs federal nutrition programs.

Ground truth

What they actually do

Pays tens of billions of dollars a year in farm subsidies and crop-insurance support, and analyses of USDA data show the bulk of commodity payments go to the largest operations. SNAP, the department’s biggest program, has recently run a payment error rate of around 11 percent.

The libertarian case

Subsidies raise land prices, favor large operators and squeeze new and small farmers. Food safety is a matter for tort liability and brand reputation, not for a department that picks winners. Free the farms and end the subsidies.

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