Farm bill has little aid for children abroad

updated 3:31 p.m. ET May 13, 2008

WASHINGTON - A five-year farm bill in Congress this week does little to address the growing global food crisis. Instead, it diverts money that could be spent feeding poor children abroad to give more subsidies for U.S. farmers now enjoying record high crop prices and incomes.

Food experts, international aid groups and the White House all complain that the $300 billion bill crafted by House and Senate negotiators focuses on the wrong priorities. The bill has widespread bipartisan support in both the House and Senate, but President Bush has promised to veto it.

While the legislation does send some food relief abroad, the amount is less than 1 percent of the bill's total cost. At the same time, the measure maintains subsidies to U.S. farmers at levels that hurt poor countries trying to produce food on their own, critics say.

Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer said last week the bill is incompatible with the world economy as poor weather, high fuel prices and growing need are contributing to higher food prices and severe hunger in developing nations. Bush contends it's too expensive and too generous to wealthy U.S. farmers.

"At a time like this, I just don't see how we can drastically reduce our capability to respond to those in need," Schafer said.

Lawmakers bypassed several opportunities to boost foreign food aid.

The House last year voted a big increase for one popular international aid program, the McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program. But that boost, which would have guaranteed $840 million over five years, didn't make it into the final bill, which is up for votes this week. That program now gets about $100 million each year but is subject to annual appropriations bills.

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Instead, the McGovern-Dole program — named for former Sens. George McGovern, D-S.D., and Bob Dole, R-Kan. — was cut to one-tenth of the House amount in recent weeks as lawmakers scrambled for ways to maintain, increase and begin new subsidies for various crops.

Rep. Jim McGovern, D-Mass. — no relation to George McGovern — said that rising global food costs would mean that more schools in developing countries will have to quit offering the promise of meals to encourage school attendance.

"The only thing crueler than not feeding hungry children is feeding them for a little while and then stopping it," he said.

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