Farm and Food Cybersecurity Act of 2025
Sen. Cotton Introduces the Farm and Food Cybersecurity Act to Shield Food Supply from Hackers
Stalled
No legislative action in over 90 days.
Legislative Progress
Key Points
- This bill tells the Department of Agriculture to check for weak spots in the computer systems used by farms, food factories, and grocery stores. The goal is to find out how hackers might try to disrupt the way Americans get their food.
- Every year for five years, the government would run a "practice drill" to see how they would handle a major food emergency. These drills would bring together government officials and private business owners to practice responding to a cyberattack.
- By doing these check-ups every two years, the government hopes to protect the economy and keep food prices stable. They want to make sure that a digital attack doesn't lead to empty shelves at the supermarket or unsafe food.
- The bill sets aside $1 million each year from 2026 to 2030 to pay for these drills. It also asks the government to make sure that new security rules don't become so complicated that they actually make it harder for businesses to stay safe.
Impact Analysis
Personal Impact
USDA staff would take on new responsibilities to conduct biennial cybersecurity risk assessments and coordinate annual cross-sector simulation exercises with officials from Homeland Security, HHS, and the intelligence community. The $1 million per year authorization is modest and may require existing staff to absorb additional duties. This is a relatively small new workload spread across multiple agencies.
Milestones
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry.
Sent to a congressional committee for expert review. The committee decides whether this bill moves forward.
Introduced in Senate
The bill was officially filed and given a number. It now enters the legislative queue.
Votes
No votes have been recorded for this legislation yet.
Related News
5 articles
Farm and Food Cybersecurity Act reintroduced to protect food supply chain from cyber threats
U.S. lawmakers have reintroduced the Farm and Food Cybersecurity Act to protect the food supply chain by identifying vulnerabilities and improving protective measures. The bill directs the USDA to conduct biennial studies on cyber threats and lead annual cross-sector crisis simulation exercises.
Bill seeks cyber protections for food and agriculture
Bipartisan, bicameral legislation was introduced to bolster cybersecurity in the food industry following the 2021 JBS ransomware incident. The bill tasks the USDA and national security agencies with holding yearly cross-sector exercises to handle food-related cyber disruptions.
Are We Ready for a Cyber Attack on Food and Farming?
Discussing federal efforts to defend the agricultural sector, this article notes that lawmakers are pushing the Farm and Food Cybersecurity Act. The bill would direct the USDA to conduct biennial studies and annual exercises to simulate responses to food-related cyber emergencies.
Source Information
Document Type
Congressional Bill
Official Title
Farm and Food Cybersecurity Act of 2025
Data Sources
Sponsor
Cosponsors
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