[Alligator Trading Co.] is among more than 700 that have shared $130 million since 2001 as part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Value-Added Producer Grants program. The goal is to help rural businesses cover marketing and development costs to expand their markets. [The] firm is on the small end. But the USDA has also awarded millions to giant food co-ops such as Welch's and Sunkist, as well as wine growers in California's Napa and Monterey counties. (Washington Post, Wednesday)

Another deja-vu story.

FEE Timely Classic
Aid to Owners of Dependent Enterprises by Charles W. Baird