The Senate Agriculture Committee released the Agricultural Act of 2026, its version of the Farm Bill, following House passage earlier this year. The bill will serve as the basis for negotiations between the two chambers.
Key details:
- Requires schools to purchase at least 95% domestic food products by category, up from the current 90% requirement, and creates a USDA-published “domestically unavailable” list for products excluded from that calculation. The Senate draft does not include House language limiting waiver authority
- Includes a provision allowing whole milk to be served in the School Breakfast Program, which was included in the House bill.
- Authorizes $200 million annually for state agencies to purchase local foods from nearby producers for distribution. Unlike the House version, this authorized funding is written broadly for food security without explicitly including distribution to schools.
- Changes the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) process from a five-year to a 10-year update cycle, consistent with the House bill.
After the Senate passes its version, the two chambers will need to reconcile before a farm bill can become law.
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