Farmers and Organizations Express Concerns Over Slow Pace and Potential Impact

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) released $20 million in paused funding, but farmers and agricultural organizations expressed concerns about the slow pace and potential impact.

Small farms are particularly vulnerable, as they have tighter profit margins and more limited access to credit. They also make up a large proportion of the farms participating in frozen grant programs.

Vanessa Garcia Polanco, government relations director for the National Young Farmers Coalition, said the funding freeze sends a signal that farmers' business plans are not safe.

Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said in a press release that some funding went to programs unrelated to agriculture and that the review is ongoing. She criticized the previous administration's policies.

The USDA did not say when additional money would be released.

Brian Geier, a farmer in Indiana, had been counting on a $10,000 grant to expand his sheep's grazing area. He agreed to purchase lambs based on the grant expectation but still doesn't know if or when he will receive the funds. He has secured a loan from a friend to ensure the lambs have a place to graze.

Geier is now rethinking his plan to purchase more sheep this summer. He said, "We'll just have to scale that back and slow it down."

Those receiving grants related to climate change are especially concerned, as the Trump administration has made targeting such programs a political priority.

Pasa Sustainable Agriculture, a nonprofit supporting farmers, manages about 200 climate-related projects funded by the USDA in 15 states. The group is now owed close to $2 million in reimbursement from the USDA.

Executive Director Hannah Smith-Brubaker fears she will have to lay off staff if the freeze continues. She said, "There are not going to be people to help those farmers and process those payments."

Roell sought out USDA funds to support a new orchard after Hurricane Helene destroyed beehives they were keeping in western North Carolina.

Roell said, "The point of this orchard was to make us more resilient. We are able to have a diversified farm that has other products to offer and can offset losses when catastrophes like this happen. But instead, now, we have the federal government as a catastrophe.