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5h ago

U.S. Aid Cuts Leave $98 Million in Food Supplies at Risk of Wastage

Over 60,000 tonnes of pre-positioned food stocks face expiration as USAID's decommissioning stalls redistribution efforts.

Food aid is stored at Edesia Nutrition warehouse in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, U.S., May 15, 2025. REUTERS/Lauren Owens Lambert
Food aid ispackaged into boxes to be delivered all over the world at the Edesia Nutrition facility in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, U.S., May 15, 2025. REUTERS/Lauren Owens Lambert
A person touches a display as food aid is made and packaged into boxes to be delivered all over the world at the Edesia Nutrition facility in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, U.S., May 15, 2025. REUTERS/Lauren Owens Lambert
Workers pack food aid into boxes to be delivered all over the world at the Edesia Nutrition facility in North Kingstown, Rhode Island, U.S., May 15, 2025. REUTERS/Lauren Owens Lambert

Overview

  • More than 66,000 tonnes of U.S.-sourced food, valued at $98 million, are stuck in warehouses in Djibouti, South Africa, Dubai, and Houston due to halted logistics and funding cuts.
  • Stocks include high-energy biscuits, vegetable oil, and fortified grains, with some items set to expire as early as July 2025, risking destruction or repurposing as animal feed.
  • The State Department has yet to approve proposals to transfer the food supplies to NGOs for emergency distribution, delaying critical deployments to hunger-stricken regions.
  • USAID is consulting with partners to allocate the stranded food but faces operational challenges as it prepares to terminate most staff by September 2025 during its decommissioning process.
  • Global hunger levels continue to rise, with 343 million people facing acute food insecurity and 1.9 million on the brink of famine, exacerbating the urgency of addressing aid disruptions.