WED AM News: Evers accuses Trump administration of ‘betraying’ Wisconsin farmers; Wisconsin Beverage Association urging lawmakers to reject FoodShare waiver bill

March 12, 2025

— Gov. Tony Evers says the Trump administration is “betraying” Wisconsin’s farmers by cutting nearly $6 million in funding for a program that helps bolster local food supply chains.

The guv’s office yesterday released a letter from the USDA informing DATCP that funding will be cut for the Local Food Purchase Assistance 2025 program, as the related agreement between the state and federal government will be ended in about two months.

“With President Trump’s 25 percent tariff taxes that are going to cause prices to go up on everything from gas to groceries and his escalating trade wars that could affect our farmers’ and producers’ bottom lines, these reckless cuts to critical federal programs couldn’t come at a worse time,” Evers said in a statement.

In the letter, USDA Deputy Administrator Jack Tuckwiller says the agency’s Agricultural Marketing Service “has determined this agreement no longer effectuates agency priorities and that termination of the award is appropriate.”

The LFPA program provides funding for state, tribal and territorial governments to buy food produced within the state or within 400 miles of its intended destination, with a goal of improving supply chains for food and agricultural goods. The program helps support food banks as well as “underserved” producers, according to an overview from the USDA.

At the end of last year, nearly 300 farmers in Wisconsin had participated in the state’s LFPA program, and 55% of them were “new or beginning” farmers, according to the guv’s office. The program distributed more than $4 million in food and was active in all 72 counties in the state.

Before the termination notice, the program was slated to start its third year in Wisconsin in several weeks.

Evers’ office also notes he “relied upon anticipated federal LFPA funding” in his 2025-27 budget, requesting about $770,000 and one full-time position to leverage the federal dollars in the coming biennium.

In an interview yesterday, Wisconsin Farmers Union Executive Director Julie Keown-Bomar said the program being cancelled is “hugely disappointing” and will impact hundreds of farmers in the state that were contributing meats, vegetables, fruits, honey and more.

“It’s going to hurt those farmers who were growing food and producing food for that program,” she said. “It’s going to devastate many of their bottom lines, because they were very hopeful that the contract would move forward as promised. And secondly, it’s going to really hurt food banks and the people that depend on them.”

The WFU has handled outreach, engagement and communicating with farmers under the projectand had multiple staff members working on it for the past two years. Keown-Bomar says “there was already uncertainty” about the program under the current administration’s cost-cutting approach, but farmers had expected the program would continue in some form this year.

“But now the whole program is cancelled,” she said, adding farmers “loved the program, it was more dependable, they could rely on a pretty steady price for their produce. And there was a distribution system … it helped build up this infrastructure across the state so that supply chains were pretty steady, especially for small producers.”

Meanwhile, Evers is urging Trump to “reverse course” on the funding cut. In his statement yesterday, the Dem guv argued congressional Republicans “cannot continue to allow the Trump Administration to obstruct funding for key programs” that were previously approved by Congress.

“We’re going to fight to make damn sure our farmers have the resources and support Wisconsin was promised,” Evers said.

— The Wisconsin Beverage Association is urging lawmakers to reject a bill that would direct state health officials to seek a waiver allowing the state to bar the purchase of certain unhealthy foods through the FoodShare program.

A group of Republican lawmakers have been circulating a co-sponsorship memo for the bill, arguing the federally funded state food benefits program is “partially exacerbating” the state’s obesity and diabetes problem. Their memo argues junk food like soda and candy are widely purchased by beneficiaries in the program, undercutting its mission of expanding access to nutritious foods.

In an email sent to all state lawmakers yesterday, the Wisconsin Beverage Association says the proposal would impact more than 400 different “soft drinks” that don’t contain sugar or calories such as flavored waters and sports drinks.

To counter the bill authors’ claims about FoodShare playing a role in obesity rates, the group points to several studies on the “health benefits” of participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which funds the state program. The association says adults in SNAP have lower average health care costs, while children in the program have “better health status” than eligible peers that don’t participate.

In addition, the association points to soda consumption falling while obesity rates have risen, arguing “If the two were connected, obesity rates should have gone down with the decline in soda consumption.” The email also notes 95% of SNAP purchases are for food, not beverages.

The association claims the proposed restrictions “will add bureaucracy and hundreds of thousands of dollars in expense” without improving the program or decreasing its costs.

“Evidence does not support the claim that implementing restrictions on SNAP purchases will improve health,” the group wrote. “The reality is the causes of obesity are complex, and no single food is to blame.”

— DATCP has announced $800,000 in funding for agricultural producers developing new ways of deploying nitrogen in their operations.

The agency yesterday released the list of projects getting funding under the 2025 Commercial Nitrogen Optimization Pilot Program, which aims to support innovative ways to “optimize” commercial nitrogen application over two growing seasons. Recipients are working with Universities of Wisconsin institutions for monitoring and field studies.

Individual producers were eligible for up to $40,000 each, and several funded projects include multiple recipients. The single largest award, exceeding $280,000, is going to the Michael Fields Agriculture Institute in Walworth County, where 11 producers are working to quantify nitrogen usage for cover crop mixes dominated by legumes.

DATCP says it received 13 applications requesting more than $1.15 million in funding.

See the list of recipients and grant amounts here.

— GOP lawmakers are seeking to get rid of an income cap for a program that helps cover the cost of caring for those with Alzheimer’s disease.

Sen. Rachael Cabral-Guevara, R-Appleton, and Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neenah, are circulating a co-sponsorship memo on the legislation. It’s focused on the Alzheimer’s Family and Caregiver Support Program, which provides up to $4,000 per recipient to help pay for in-home help, chair lifts, nutrition supplements, adult daycare and other services.

The bill authors say counties that administer the program are “struggling to spend the funds” provided by the state, pointing to “outdated” eligibility criteria.

Plus, they note changes to the National Family Caregiver Support Program will require state or local matching funds that don’t limit eligibility based on financial situation, meaning the state could lose access to this national program if the law isn’t changed.

The AFCSP, which is managed by the Wisconsin Bureau of Aging and Disability Resources, provides funding to counties and tribes. But recipients can only get these county resources if the joint income of the person with Alzheimer’s disease and that person’s spouse is $48,000 per year or less, the memo shows.

Last year, 10% of the funds allocated by the state through the program weren’t spent by counties due to the “limited number” of people that fall under the income cap. The bill authors note the original income eligibility was capped at $40,000 when the program was created in 1987. If adjusted for inflation, that would be about $114,000 today, the memo shows.

“Given the new federal code and the flexibility for counties to utilize these resources for individuals with the greatest need, the common-sense solution is to eliminate the cap in state statute,” the lawmakers wrote.

The legislation is backed by the Wisconsin chapter of the Alzheimer’s Association, the Greater Wisconsin Agency on Aging Resources, the Wisconsin Family and Caregiver Support Alliance, and the Wisconsin Aging Advocacy Network.

The co-sponsorship deadline is Thursday at noon.

For more of the most relevant health care news, reports on groundbreaking research in Wisconsin, links to top stories and more, sign up today for the free daily Health Care Report from WisPolitics and WisBusiness.com.

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— Madison-based rewards company Fetch is touting a $500 million annual revenue run rate in the fourth quarter of 2024 as well as its growing user base.

This measure of estimated annual revenue based on last quarter’s performance marks a 65% increase year-over-year, according to yesterday’s announcement. The company has now also grown its user base to 12.5 million people, who collectively scan billions of receipts for rewards through the company’s app.

The company expects “momentum to continue” this year as its first-quarter revenue is on track to exceed the fourth quarter of 2024, while it brings more users on board and continues to expand the platform.

“Fetch is redefining how brands connect with consumers, turning more of life’s activities into rewarding experiences,” Fetch CEO and Founder Wes Schroll said in a statement. “Our record growth proves the power of our platform, the loyalty of our users and the real-time value we deliver to brand partners.”

See the release and listen to an earlier WisBusiness.com podcast with Schroll.

— The Wisconsin Technology Council on Monday is hosting its Wisconsin Tech Summit at American Family Field in Milwaukee.

The 12th annual event will feature curated meetings between entrepreneurs and established firms, presentations on key topics for the state’s business community such as tariffs and AI, remarks by Milwaukee Brewers Vice President of Information Technology Derek Hyde, and more.

See the release and get more event information.

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