The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service said it will partner with the South Carolina Department of Agriculture to offer $4 million in grants and the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry to offer $6.3 million in grants to boost infrastructure for domestic food and farm businesses.
These grants, under the Resilient Food System Infrastructure program, will support expanded capacity for processing, transporting, wholesaling and distributing locally and regionally produced food products, including specialty crops, according to USDA.
“Strengthening the middle of the food supply chain in South Carolina will provide stronger markets for local farmers, increase stability for consumers and help ensure a strong future of agriculture in the state,” Hugh Weathers, South Carolina commissioner of agriculture, said in a news release.
South Carolina grants
The South Carolina Department of Agriculture said public feedback indicated several funding priorities for the RFSI grants. It will offer infrastructure grants (ranging from $100,000 to $3 million) and simplified equipment-only grants (ranging from $10,000 to $100,000).
The state ag deparment said RFSI subawards will include:
- Projects that increase local producers’ abilities to process, aggregate and distribute products through the construction, expansion or modernization of cold and dry storage facilities.
- Projects that increase local producers’ abilities to process, aggregate and distribute products through the creation of additional transportation to move products and that increase distribution channels through the construction, expansion or modernization of distribution facilities.
- Projects that increase processing capacity, creating new distribution channels and markets for value-added products.
- Projects that purchase and/or modernize middle-of-the-food-supply-chain equipment, packaging and food safety and labor needs; and increase local producers’ abilities to process, aggregate and distribute agricultural products.
Oklahoma grants
The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry will accept applications for the infrastructure grants through Feb. 23.
“This partnership between USDA and Oklahoma is allowing critical funding to reach areas of the supply chain that need it most,” USDA Marketing and Regulatory Programs Under Secretary Jenny Lester Moffitt said in the release. “The projects funded through this program will create new opportunities for the region’s small and midsize producers to thrive, expand access to nutritious food options, and increase supply chain resiliency.”
Potential projects include those that will increase cold storage, expand distribution channels for food producers and increase the number of co-packing options.
Related: USDA, California offer $30M in food supply infrastructure grants
