What does a Biden Presidency Mean for Food Policy?
Anthony De Cicco - HPSA Public Relations Committee
According to the USDA’s most recent report on food security within the United States, 37.2 million people were experiencing food insecurity. Amid the pandemic, that number has been estimated to have grown by 17 million to reach a total of 54.2 million Americans, or 16.4% of the entire US population. The need for robust and far-reaching food and nutrition policy is seen as one of the only ways to address this increasingly concerning issue at its roots. In this post, we will be exploring the impact that a Trump Administration has had on food policy over the last 4 years and will conclude with how we think a Biden presidency might impact this important policy area.
The Trump Administration’s Impact on Food Policy
Trump is notoriously pro-business and anti-regulatory in his approach to dealing with most issues. This approach has made its way into how his cabinet address food and nutrition policy, where there is a central belief that it is up to the consumer to make the right choices. In 2018, under Trump, the USDA decreased nutrition standards for school meals that were pioneered by Michelle Obama. These changes were ultimately ruled a violation of the law by a federal judge. Recently in 2020, the USDA proposed loosening nutrition mandates around vegetable variety in addition to reducing the amount of fruit required at breakfast for school meals. Adding to these policies, the Trump administration has repeatedly proposed cutting hundreds of billions of dollars from the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) while also increasing the restriction of eligibility for enrollment into the program. Even during the pandemic, Trump has been undermining the severity of food insecurity in the United States. In 2020, Trump proposed a rule which would have cut 700,000 unemployed people off of SNAP benefits, but this rule was denied by a federal judge.
Although Trump has repeatedly tried to strip nutrition standards and funding from SNAP, other efforts by his administration have been carried out in order to ensure that emergency food relief gets into the hands of families and students in need. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act has implemented and directed new relief efforts such as emergency SNAP allotments and Pandemic EBT (P-EBT) for low-income children that depend on school meals. Trump’s presidency has been riddled with conflicting policies and stances, but at the very least these COVID-19 responses to food insecurity are much needed in a time where many families are struggling to make ends meet.
What will a Biden Presidency Mean for Food Policy?
I am hopeful that Joe Biden will have a more positive and lasting impact on food and nutrition policy compared to Trump’s last 4 years. Seen as a moderate democrat, many people have hopes that Biden will expand funding and access for SNAP, WIC, and P-EBT, especially during the pandemic which has had devastating effects on the country. Both Biden and Harris support a 15% increase in SNAP benefits to target older Americans and Americans with disabilities. Avenel Joseph, the Vice President of Policy for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, anticipates that this will be an early focus for the president-elect.
Overall, the Biden-Harris presidency will hopefully mirror the Obama-Biden presidency. The Obama-Biden Administration believed the obesity crisis was a result of big food companies injecting the food supply with unhealthy, ultra-processed foods and that governmental intervention was the best way to address it. Many other food and nutrition related policies were enacted under Obama, so expect a similar agenda from the Biden-Harris Administration. In agreement with many policy officials, anti-hunger groups are calling on Biden to remove 2 rules, categorical eligibility and public charge, which reduce benefits for some households and immigrants. It is estimated that the categorical eligibility rule proposed by Trump would cut SNAP benefits from 3 million people with an additional barrier to automatic access to free school meals for almost 1 million children. The public charge rule currently denies green cards to immigrants who are participating in SNAP or other public benefits. Hopefully in the future Biden takes the necessary action required to improve the issue of food insecurity within the United States.
Wrapping Up
As future public health professionals, it is concerning to read how Trump has continually tried to undercut the food and nutrition needs of Americans, especially during the turbulent times of this pandemic. We remain hopeful that a Biden presidency will yield more inclusive and effective food and nutrition policies.