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In has been a swirl of madness, dizzy debates and shocking leaks, and now the 2016 US election is over, with Donald Trump voted in as the next President of the United States. With that in mind we’ve decided to take a look at where he stands on five key food areas. Trump is a man, it should be noted, who says he prefers to eat his steaks well done.
1 - Food Security
The Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program, commonly known as SNAP, is the name given to food stamps in the US. The Republican Party Platform, which was approved at the RNC, calls for breaking the SNAP program away from the USDA and the Farm Bill – this means that SNAP’s budget would no longer be debated in court and, as Politifact reports, would make the program more vulnerable to budget cuts. This program provides assistance to aver 40 million low income families in the US.
2 - Climate Change
Scientists unanimously agree that man made climate change is personally contributing to a rise in temperature on our planet. Many world leaders believe it should be the number one priority for any government to address, Trump, however, believes that climate change is part of a global conspiracy created by the Chinese. Perhaps more worryingly, Trump also claims that he will cancel the Paris Climate Agreement – a 195 country-strong pledge to slow global warming.
3 - Food Protection
Trump has put forward radical plans to scrap the Environmental Protection Agency – an organisation responsible for putting forward things like the Clean Air Act. The newly elected President believes the agency is a waste of money and plans to scrap the over arching national organisation in favour of handing power back to single States. Trump has also proposed eliminating the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) – who he called the ‘food police.’
4 - GMO
Trump is a supporter of GMO, but opposes the mandatory labelling of genetically modified foods. As John Robbins, president of The Food Revolution Network, points out in the video below, Trump’s appointment of Pat Roberts, a vocal fighter of mandatory GMO labelling, in his agriculture advisory committee shows where the then Republican hopeful was at in terms of GMOs going forward. This video was recorded before the election result.
5 - Minimum Wage
The minimum wage debate is one that has a direct impact on restaurant owners and workers. Trump has said the amount should be “at least $10.”
