Department of Agriculture Food Surplus Inventories Available for Distribution to Low-Income and Unemployed Persons

GAO provided information related to the Department of Agriculture's food surplus inventories available for distribution to low-income and unemployed persons. GAO found that about 86 percent of the butter, 71 percent of the cheese, and 58 percent of the nonfat dry milk in surplus were less than 1 year old. Agriculture's Commodity Credit Corporation, a wholly owned Government corporation, reported that its costs to store dairy products rose by more than $20 million between fiscal years (FY's) 1981 and 1982. The Corporation's cost to transport dairy products has also risen, totaling about $54 million in FY 1982 compared to about $50 million in FY 1981. Butter is stored in freezer warehouses, cheese is stored in cold storage warehouses, and nonfat dry milk is stored in dry storage warehouses. The Corporation owns substantial quantities of various types of grains, and even greater quantities are stored as collateral for price-support loans. However, much of the grain is not available for use in an emergency food program and some cannot be made into products that would be readily acceptable for use by many people. The Corporation-owned grain is in bulk stock and is not of the best quality. For the school lunch program, the Corporation receives quarterly estimates of the States' needs for food. After receiving these estimates, the oldest dairy products in inventory and the locations of the warehouses in which they are stored are identified. Firms are then selected to process the products based on transportation costs. The procedures used for filling orders under the special butter and cheese distribution are less formal, and the orders are usually filled in the fastest way possible. Nonprofit charitable organizations involved in food assistance programs cite funding, staffing, and transportation as major problems which hamper their efforts.