USDA released its updated food expenditure series this morning. Going into the farm bill and SNAP debate – and in light of the debt ceiling deal which makes some reforms to SNAP – the trend line of government spending on consumer food purchases is noteworthy for its steep increase since pre-COVID 2019. Two things stand out. First the trend line for government nutrition purchases since COVID – which includes traditional programs like SNAP and COVID relief spending. Second, the trend line of government nutrition program purchases since the 2014 farm bill – when other SNAP reforms and spending were made.
The 2018 farm bill called for an update of the benefits under SNAP by 2022. As we not...
What You Need to Know Today: Crude oil prices extended their rally today, supported by several developments, including escalating Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabian oil infrastructure and growing concerns about supply disruptions. The Trump administration is reportedly preparing to remove 50 perc...
Key Takeaways: The agricultural trade surplus has become a sizable deficit: the balance swung from a $40.1 billion surplus in 2011 to a $40.7 billion deficit in 2025. Imports kept growing while exports lost momentum: between 2020 and 2025, agricultural imports increased 45 percent, compa...
USDA released its October Cattle on Feed report Friday, showing 11.4 million cattle in feedlots with capacity for 1,000 head or more, slightly below last year. September placements were the lowest for the month since records began in 1996, marking the third consecutive month of placements sett...
Total Red Meat & Poultry September 2026 total red meat and poultry stocks totaled 1.97 billion pounds, down 1.4 percent from August despite typically increasing 0.8 percent during the month, and were 1.5 percent below September 2025 levels. The decline pushed total inventories to a new five...
