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In 2025, USDA ended two pandemic-era local-food programs: the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program (LFS), which supported food purchases for schools and child-care institutions, and the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA), which supported food purchases for food banks and other feeding programs. Their termination did not end every route for schools to buy local food, but USDA’s newer school initiatives are separate programs—not a restoration of LFS or LFPA.
Which USDA programs were cut?
The two programs had different recipients and purposes. LFS directed cooperative-agreement funding toward local food for schools and child-care institutions. LFPA supported state, tribal and territorial governments purchasing food for feeding programs, including food banks.
| Program | What it supported | Who received or used the food | Geographic rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program (LFS) | State cooperative-agreement funds for food-assistance purchases of domestic local foods | Schools and child-care institutions | The USDA program description identifies domestic local food; it does not specify LFPA’s 400-mile rule. USDA Agricultural Marketing Service |
| Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA) | Noncompetitive cooperative agreements for governments to purchase food for feeding programs | Food banks and other feeding programs | Food produced within the state or within 400 miles of its delivery destination. USDA Agricultural Marketing Service |
The Associated Press reported on March 12, 2025, that the two programs had provided more than $1 billion combined, including about $660 million through LFS for schools and child-care centers. These are figures reported in that article, not a current annual appropriation or a measure of what each state or institution received. Associated Press, March 12, 2025
How could the cuts affect schools and food banks?
Schools and child-care institutions
Schools and child-care institutions lost a dedicated funding route for purchasing local food through LFS. The national total reported by AP does not show how much a particular school, state or supplier lost, nor how many deliveries stopped. Actual effects depend on local awards, remaining balances, purchasing arrangements and available suppliers.
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Food banks and other feeding programs
LFPA supported food purchases for food banks and other feeding programs. Ending the program removed that cooperative-agreement route, but the available national reporting does not establish the current effect on any specific food bank, its deliveries or its replacement funding. Those details require state or award-level information; the national program figures cannot establish a local loss.
What local-food purchasing routes remain for schools?
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service continues to provide guidance on purchasing local foods with federal child-nutrition funds. Its Procuring Local Foods page includes procurement resources and a policy memo dated May 6, 2025. This guidance is a procurement resource, not a replacement award equivalent to LFS.
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On August 24, 2026, USDA announced Harvest to Hallways, a separate set of school-focused initiatives. The announcement includes outreach about the Local Option procurement pathway, $50 million for school-kitchen infrastructure and up to $25 million in additional FY2026 Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grants. USDA, August 24, 2026
These initiatives use different tools: procurement outreach, infrastructure investment and grants. USDA’s announcement does not say that LFS or LFPA cooperative agreements have been reinstated, and it does not establish that every school will receive funding or benefit from the initiatives.
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What should communities check to understand their local impact?
- Ask the state child-nutrition agency or school food authority whether it received LFS funds, what was spent, and whether any balance remains.
- Ask the state, tribal or territorial agency administering LFPA, or the relevant food bank, about awards, purchases and deliveries in the area.
- For current school procurement options, consult USDA FNS’s local-food procurement guidance and the school’s procurement staff.
- For a specific funding or delivery claim, seek the applicable award notice, agency record or institution-level information. National totals do not substitute for local records.
Are these cuts connected to other USDA program changes?
USDA also announced the termination of its Regional Food Business Centers in July 2025, but that was a separate event—not another name for LFS or LFPA. USDA said existing commitments for more than 450 grants would be honored, and some regional centers could continue managing existing Business Builder subawards through May 2026. USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, July 15, 2025
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What is known about legal challenges?
A 2025 report about a state lawsuit does not establish the final legal status of challenges to the terminations. No final court outcome is established here; readers seeking the status of a particular case should consult its current court docket or a subsequent court decision.
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