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With 1,100 metric tons of emergency food rations nearing expiry in a US government warehouse in Dubai after President Donald Trump’s aid freeze, it took a warning of wasted tax dollars for a top US official to finally agree to a deal for the supplies to be used, sources told Reuters.
The wasted biscuits will be sent to a landfill or incinerated in the United Arab Emirates, two sources said. This disposal will cost the US government an additional $100,000, as stated in the May 5 memo verified by three sources familiar with the situation.
These delays and waste further illustrate how the freeze and subsequent cutbacks, which led to the termination of thousands of USAID employees and contractors, have thrown global humanitarian operations into disarray.
A State Department spokesperson, now responsible for US foreign aid, confirmed via email to Reuters that the biscuits would need to be destroyed. However, they explained that these stocks were purchased as a contingency beyond projections under the Biden administration, resulting in their expiration.
Trump has argued that the US bears a disproportionate burden in foreign aid spending and wants other countries to increase their contributions.
His administration announced plans to shut down USAID in January, leaving more than 60,000 metric tons of food aid stranded in warehouses worldwide, as Reuters reported in May.
The food aid stuck in Dubai consisted of fortified wheat biscuits, which are calorie-dense and typically distributed in crisis situations where cooking facilities are unavailable, providing immediate nutrition for children and adults, according to the UN World Food Program.
The WFP reports that 319 million people are facing acute levels of food insecurity worldwide. Of those, 1.9 million people are experiencing catastrophic hunger and are on the brink of famine, primarily in Gaza and Sudan.
After Jeremy Lewin and Kenneth Jackson, operatives from the budget-slashing Department of Government Efficiency, were appointed acting deputy USAID administrators and began terminating food security programs, USAID staff were prohibited from communicating with aid organizations requesting the biscuits, according to two sources.
A State Department official, speaking anonymously, claimed it was entirely false that USAID staff were barred from communicating with aid groups, insisting that no directive was given to cease engagement. However, Reuters reported that a January 25 email from Jackson emphasized a complete halt to all foreign assistance, effectively banning USAID staff from any external communications without prior approval from their front office.
The memo reviewed by Reuters stated, “Failure to abide by this directive…will result in disciplinary action.”
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio assured lawmakers on May 21 that no food aid would go to waste, as USAID staff were waiting for Lewin to approve a deal to transfer the 622 metric tons of biscuits to the WFP for distribution before they began expiring in September.
That agreement was finally approved in June after weeks of delay, according to five sources familiar with the matter and the May 19 memo verified by two of those sources.
Both sources informed Reuters that Lewin, who now heads the State Department’s Office of Foreign Assistance, did not respond to the request for weeks.
The State Department official explained that the memo required revisions and edits before Lewin could sign it on June 2.
Eventually, USAID staff sent a memo to Lewin warning that the biscuits had a limited shelf-life and that the agency would have to pay an estimated $125,000 for their destruction, resulting in wasted taxpayer dollars, unless an agreement was reached with WFP to accept them, according to both sources.
Lewin finally signed off, allowing USAID staff to salvage the 622 metric tons of biscuits, valued at just under $1 million, now destined for Syria, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, as stated in the memo.
Lewin did not respond to requests for comment.
The State Department official maintained that Lewin approved the transfer in a timely manner, emphasizing the need to find cost-effective shipping options that weren’t several times more expensive than the value of the biscuits.
Both sources reported that it took until early July to begin sending the stocks, as rearranging shipments after supply chain disruptions typically requires weeks of logistical work.
A WFP official confirmed that they had signed an agreement to receive the biscuits.
The supplies slated for destruction could have fed approximately 27,000 people for a month, based on a Reuters analysis using WFP figures. These stocks were originally intended for USAID partners in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Alexandra Rutishauser-Perera, the director of nutrition at Action Against Hunger UK, commented, “We anticipated that the suspension of USAID funding would have immediate consequences, and the destruction of emergency food, at a time when acute hunger is at its highest on record, underscores the unintended ramifications of such funding cuts.”
The United States remains the world’s largest humanitarian aid donor, contributing at least 38 percent of all donations recorded by the UN. Last year, it disbursed $61 billion in foreign assistance, with just over half channeled through USAID, according to government data.
In March, the Trump administration notified Congress that USAID would terminate almost all of its staff in two phases on July 1 and September 2, as it prepared to shut down the agency.
In a statement on July 1 marking the transfer of USAID to the State Department, Rubio announced that the US was abandoning what he called a “charity-based model” and would focus on empowering countries to achieve sustainable growth.
“We will prioritize nations that have demonstrated both the capacity and willingness to help themselves. Our resources will be directed to areas where they can have a multiplier effect and catalyze durable private sector investment, including from American companies, and global investment,” he wrote. (Reuters)
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