NEW ORLEANS, LA – Yesterday, a broad cross-section of farm, labor, maritime, and government officials met at the Port of New Orleans to celebrate the latest U.S. donation of rice and wheat through the Food for Peace Program.
For more than 72 years, the Food for Peace program has delivered American-grown commodities like rice, wheat, and sorghum to people facing hunger across the globe for humanitarian reasons and as part of the United States’ exercising of soft power. Yesterday’s event marks the latest donation of U.S. commodities under the Food for Peace program since it was transferred to the U.S. Department of Agriculture's administration at the beginning of the year as part of a memorandum of understanding (see
USA Rice Daily, February 3, 2026).
Over the weekend, 28,420 metric tons of rice were loaded on the U.S.-flagged Liberty Grace, that will proceed to the Port of Houston to receive 19,980 metric tons of wheat before sailing to Mombasa, Kenya. Upon arrival, the World Food Programme will oversee the distribution of these U.S.-grown commodities to help feed more than one million people facing hunger.
USA Rice Chair and Louisiana rice farmer John Owen said, “Rice is the most widely consumed grain in the world, and these 28,420 metric tons of Louisiana rice will play a vital role in helping feed those facing famine. At a time when our industry is struggling, this in-kind commodity donation is precisely what we need and makes us optimistic about the future of Food for Peace under USDA.”
Owen also called on Congress to make permanent the transfer of the Food for Peace program to USDA.
Other speakers at the event included USDA Deputy Under Secretary for Trade and Foreign Agriculture Affairs Michelle Bekkering, Louisiana Department of Agriculture Commissioner Dr. Mike Strain, World Food Programme Director Matthew Nims, and Executive Vice President of Operations with Liberty Maritime William Campbell.
Yesterday’s event came as USDA continued to implement the interagency agreement where it assumed operations of the program from the dissolved U.S. Agency for International Development, but also amid continued debate in Congress over the farm bill. A coalition of more than 80 organizations, including USA Rice, has advocated for the permanent transition of the administration of Food for Peace Title II to USDA given the department’s proven track record of administering other U.S. in-kind food aid programs.
In May, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the bipartisan Farm, Food, and National Security Act of 2026, which would codify the shift of Food for Peace to USDA. Today, the Senate Agriculture Committee took up the Agricultural Act of 2026 but the bill did not advance out of committee. USA Rice and the broad coalition of agriculture, maritime, and labor interests will continue to urge Congress to enact a farm bill that would permanently codify this transfer.