Farmers call on DOGE to investigate billion dollar commodity checkoff fund
- ZISK
- Mar 4
- 1 min read
Former Missouri Democratic Lieutenant Governor Joe Maxwell, who has been a farmer since the 1980s, is calling on the Department of Government Efficiency to investigate commodity checkoff funds, having accused the $1 billion a year fund of being ridden with fraud and abuse.
“While farmers have been paying in billions, literally they have paid in billions of dollars into the commodity checkoff programs, we have lost hundreds of thousands of farmers,” Maxwell, who is with Farm Action Fund, told the Washington Examiner. “These checkoff programs tout that they have as much as $11 or $12 return on investment for every dollar invested, but that return is not going back to the farmer.”
Commodity checkoff funds were created under the Reagan administration for the purpose of the government to fund research, marketing and promotions for the agricultural industry. A prime example of commodity checkoff funds in work would be the Got Milk ad campaign. These funds are managed by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and there are a total of 22 commodity checkoff funds such as the United Soybean Board and the Cattleman’s Beef Board, which collect the money from farmers.
By Elaine Mallon
March 2, 2025
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