Stop Subsidizing Obesity

Our tax dollars should only go to things that serve the public good, yet we’re handing out taxpayer subsidies to big agribusinesses to help subsidize junk food. Huge, profitable corporations like Cargill and Monsanto are pocketing tens of billions in taxpayer dollars, and turning subsidized crops into junk food ingredients—including high fructose corn syrup. These taxpayer giveaways are all the more absurd at a time when one in three kids is overweight or obese, and obesity-related diseases like diabetes are turning into an epidemic.

With Congress looking at ways to trim spending and reduce the deficit, cutting this kind of wasteful spending has the potential to bring together allies from across the political spectrum.

But big agribusiness will fight to protect their billions in subsidies.  We know, because in 2008, they spent $200 million lobbying and campaign contributions.

No one in Congress wants to be seen standing up for taxpayer giveaways to junk food, and with public concern about obesity and federal spending at all time highs, your support can help us finally beat Big Ag and end subsidies for junk food.

Issue updates

Blog Post | Consumer, Foods, Waste

Stop Subsidizing Junk Food: Galley Closing and Panel | Thomas Letchworth

Government subsidies that benefit big agribusinesses, like Monsanto and Cargill, have made products like corn syrup so cheap that it's less expensive to buy a Twinkle than a bunch of carrots. The majority of these subsidies go to less than 10% of farms in America, and yet these farms receive more than $245 billion to grow only a handful of cash crops that are made into unhealthy, processed foods. It should come as no suprise to us then that childhood obesity has more than quadrupled in the last forty years. We need to end this wasteful government spending program.

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Media Hit | Foods

OSPIRG Works To Combat Unhealth Food Subsidies

It makes no sense that a box of Twinkies is less expensive than a bag of carrots

 

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Blog Post | Corporate, Foods

Momentum building for stopping wasteful agricultural subsidies

As the year comes to a close, we have hit several important milestones in our campaign - run jointly with PIRGs in over 20 states - to end wasteful agricultural subsidies that line the pockets of the largest agribusinesses and go to corn syrup and other junk food ingredients. Since we launched this campaign last Spring, we educated half a million people across the country — including tens of thousands in Oregon — about these subsidies. Over 150 Oregon small farmers have joined our effort.

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Blog Post | Foods

Food Inc Screening Nov 9th | Thomas Letchworth

In order to raise awareness of government subsidized food, and of the alternatives we have available to us in the local community, OSPIRG is putting together a dinner comprised entirely of local organic foods. During the dinner our guest speaker will be discussing the implications of outdated, expensive agricultural subsidies. After our guest speaks, we will be screening Food Inc, a movie regarding the effects of government subsidies on our nation. The event is Wednesday, November 9th, at 6:00 PM in the Hawthorne Room (In the Cascade Complex, past the dish return area).

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Blog Post | Hunger

Trick-Or-Can | Thomas Letchworth

Our annual Trick-Or-Can event, put on earlier this week by OSPIRG's "End Hunger and Homelessness" campaign, was a huge success! Over the course of two days students collected 545 pounds of food! This accomplishment by far surpassed our goal of collecting 200 lbs of food! All donations will be distributed to the Ashland Food Angels, a non-profit organization that helps those in need. A big thank you to everyone who was involved! We are really happy with how well this turned out, and are excited to do more service projects in the future.

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