Each week, Food Tank is rounding up a few news stories that inspire excitement, infuriation, or curiosity.
100 Days of the Trump-Vance Administration
This week marks 100 days since the Trump-Vance Administration took office, and Food Tank is taking stock of how recent policy decisions are reshaping the food system. Food Tank has tracked more than 70 policy changes with wide-ranging implications for food, agriculture, health, and climate.
WFP to Cut Nearly a Third of Staff by 2026
The World Food Programme (WFP) is preparing to cut up to 30 percent of its global workforce by next year, according to an internal staff memo obtained by Devex. The United Nations agency, which received nearly half its funding from the United States in 2024, has been hit particularly hard by cuts to USAID under the Trump-Vance Administration. As humanitarian needs rise in places like Ethiopia, Sudan, and Yemen, WFP says the budget shortfall will force it to prioritize only its most critical operations. The memo says the organization’s projected funding for 2025 is just US$6.4 billion—less than two-thirds of what’s needed.
Trump Administration Signals Possible Bailouts for Farmers as Trade Uncertainty Grows
With U.S. commodity exports to China plummeting and trade uncertainty on the rise, the Trump-Vance Administration says it is prepared to offer bailout funds to American farmers. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins confirmed on CNN that plans are in development should tariffs continue to harm producers.
But some in the agricultural sector remain skeptical. Agriculture exporters in the U.S. say the response to the tariffs has led to canceled export orders and layoffs. And Peter Friedman, Executive Director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition, an export trade group for farmers, says there is a “full-blown crisis already.” Farmers and economists argue that what’s needed isn’t short-term relief, but long-term market stability. “Farmers prefer to earn their money from the markets,” says Jacquie Holland, an economist with the American Soybean Association.
Brazil Pushes for Climate Commitments Ahead of COP30
With COP30 approaching, Brazil is urging countries to submit updated climate action plans, known as Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). Only 13 of the 195 signatories to the Paris Agreement met the February deadline for updated NDCs, according to an analysis by Carbon Brief. At a recent pre-summit meeting, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres called for more ambitious pledges by September. “The planet is tired of unfulfilled promises,” Lula says.
New Law Could Shield Bayer from Cancer Lawsuits
North Dakota recently became the first U.S. state to enact a law shielding pesticide manufacturers from certain legal claims. The law, which takes effect in August, says that federally approved pesticide labels are sufficient to satisfy state warning requirements—potentially limiting consumers’ ability to sue over health risks.
The move could benefit Bayer, which faces more than 181,000 claims alleging that glyphosate, the key ingredient in its weedkiller Roundup, causes non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Sam Wagner of the Dakota Resource Council says the law will make it “extremely tough for anyone to win a case” against pesticide manufacturers. While North Dakota has a small population, Bayer hopes the move will set a precedent in other states. A similar bill is awaiting action in Georgia.
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Photo courtesy of Jonathan Kemper, Unsplash
