The Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954 (, enacted July 10, 1954) is a

United States federal law The law of the United States comprises many levels of codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the most important is the nation's Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the federal government of the United States, as well as va ...

that established Food for Peace, the primary and first permanent US organization for food assistance to foreign nations. The Act was signed into law on July 10, 1954, by President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

. The act was popular in

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...

because it allowed American farmers to sell their surplus commodities, fed hungry people, and developed future markets. According to Eisenhower, the purpose of the legislation was to "lay the basis for a permanent expansion of our exports of agricultural products with lasting benefits to ourselves and peoples and peoples of other lands." The act was first drafted by future

Foreign Agricultural Service The Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) is the foreign affairs agency with primary responsibility for the United States Department of Agriculture's (USDA) overseas programs – market development, international trade agreements and negotiations, ...

(FAS) Administrator

Gwynn Garnett Gwynn Garnett (December 26, 1909 to November 21, 1995) was the administrator of the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) of the United States of America from 1955 to 1959. He also wrote the first draft of what would become the Agricultural Trade Dev ...

in 1950. It is unusual in that it allows the FAS to conclude agreements with foreign governments without the advice or consent of the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

References

External links

Information about Food for Peace, from usaid.gov

Information about U.S. agricultural legislation, from cornell.edu
1954 in law United States federal agriculture legislation 83rd United States Congress United States federal legislation articles without infoboxes {{US-fed-statute-stub