Washington, D.C., September 29, 2025 — The US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at strengthening coordination between the two agencies to protect competition across critical agricultural input markets — including feed, fertilizer, fuel, seed, and equipment.
The agreement formalizes a partnership that expands long-running collaboration between the DOJ’s Antitrust Division and the USDA, with a particular focus on ensuring farmers and ranchers have fair, competitive access to essential goods needed for production.
“Antitrust enforcement ensures free market competition for agricultural inputs, lowering costs for farmers and prices for consumers,” said Assistant Attorney General Abigail Slater of the Antitrust Division. “America’s farmers deserve nothing less than the best the Antitrust Division and USDA can do to promote competitive markets that free them to feed America.”
Under the MOU, signed on September 26, both agencies commit to enhanced cooperation in monitoring, investigating, and addressing potentially anticompetitive practices in agricultural input sectors. The framework establishes regular consultation channels between DOJ and USDA officials, including attorneys, economists, and technical experts, to improve the timeliness and effectiveness of competition-related actions.
