The USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service says it recently awarded over $33.5 million for 113 grant projects in 43 states and territories to expand and strengthen local and regional food systems and increase the availability of locally grown agricultural products.
The funding will be distributed through the Local Agriculture Market Program’s Farmers Market and Local Food Promotion Programs and the Regional Food System Partnerships grant program.
“The Local Agriculture Market Program is a key piece of USDA’s efforts to strengthen local and regional food systems with over $220 million awarded to 597 projects since 2021,” Jenny Lester Moffitt, USDA undersecretary for marketing and regulatory programs, said in a news release. “The projects will expand market opportunities for small and mid-sized producers, allow more money to stay within local and rural economies, and build resilience in our food systems.”
FMLFPP is implemented through two grant programs, the Farmers Market Promotion Program and the Local Food Promotion Program. The goal of the programs is to strengthen local and regional food businesses through projects that support farmers via the creation of targeted marketing capabilities; training on topics such as record keeping, fair pricing, family-friendly marketing and agritourism activities; and new market development.
This year FMPP awarded $14.2 million to 60 projects across 28 states and territories, the release said. The program funds projects that support producer-to-consumer markets, such as farmers markets, roadside stands, agritourism activities, community-supported agriculture programs and online sales.
LFPP is awarding $14.1 million in fiscal year 2024 funding to 43 projects across 29 states and territories, the USDA said. The program supports local and regional food businesses that engage as intermediaries in indirect producer-to-consumer marketing. The awarded projects focus on activities, such as supporting the processing, aggregation, distribution and storage of local and regional food products; developing value-added products; and facilitating regional food chain coordination.
In Her Shoes Inc. in Webb, Miss., will receive LFPP grant to enhance the sustainability of small farms as well as rural and underserved communities’ access to fresh produce in the Mississippi Delta. Its project will provide support and training to more than 30 small, locally owned and operated farm businesses and build a mobile produce market that connects farmers to other programs, such as USDA’s Local Food Purchase Assistance program, the release said.
RFSP awards $5.2 million to 10 partnerships across 10 states, USDA said. The program supports the development of relationships between local and regional food businesses and institutions, such as schools, hospitals and governments to increase local and regional foods in institutional cafeterias and meal programs.
A project that is a recipient of a RFSP grant is the Southeast Regional Cooperative in East Point, Ga., which will create a partnership that will engage food and agriculture businesses, nonprofits, and universities to increase efficiency in the region’s charitable food network, according to the release. The cooperative said it will develop strategies to improve transportation management, middle of the supply chain logistics, value-added processing and integrated data management.
