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USDA Pandemic Assistance for Producers – USDA is dedicating at least $6 billion towards new programs to reach producers.
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Federal-State Marketing Improvement Program (FSMIP) – This program support projects exploring new market opportunities and innovations. Submit your application by May 24, 2021.
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Acer Access and Development Program (Acer) – This program supports the efforts of states, tribal governments and research institutions to promote the domestic maple syrup industry. Submit your application by May 24, 2021.
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Micro-Grants for Food Security Program (MGFSP) – This program designed specifically to realize USDA’s commitment to support communities across the U.S. that have significant levels of food insecurity and import significant quantities of food. Grants are awarded non-competitively to eligible states and territories. Submit your application by May 24, 2021.
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Specialty Crop Block Grants – This program funds innovative projects designed to support the expanding specialty crop food sector and explore new market opportunities for U.S. food and agricultural products. Grants are awarded non-competitively to eligible states and territories. Submit your application by June 11, 2021.
Local Food Systems Response to COVID Webinar Series
The Local Food System Response to COVID-19 research team from Colorado State University developed a consumer survey to understand changes in consumer behavior during the pandemic.This webinar’s discussion will combine survey findings with perspectives from industry leaders to better inform businesses along local and regional supply chains about important drivers and suggest to partners and technical assistance providers where there may be new opportunities to support this sector.
Speakers: Dar Wolnik, Farmers Market Coalition and Jimmy Wright, Wright Food Solutions (National Grocers Association) and Andy Ollove, The Fresh Approach
As a preview to the webinar, we are sharing a few highlights from recent Consumer Food Insights, which share analysis from a survey conducted by Colorado State University of 5,000 households in the fall of 2020. Online shopping increased dramatically from September 2019 to September 2020. CSU asked survey respondents if they purchased online (“At-home Delivery”, “Curbside/In-store Pick up”, or both) from any of the channels where they shopped in three time periods—September 2019 (pre-COVID-19), April 2020, and September 2020.
In September 2020, 49% of all survey respondents stated that they shopped online for food. The percentage of respondents shopping online remained higher than the previous year with almost half of all consumers shopping online, even after many of the restrictions seen in April 2020 had been lifted.
We evaluated survey responses by community size to understand differences in perception of local food systems during COVID-19. We matched each respondent’s zip code to USDA ERS’s county-level Rural Urban Continuum Codes (RUCC). Using these codes, we placed respondents into three groups based on community size.
- Large – metropolitan counties with population above 1 million
- Medium – all other metropolitan counties
- Small – nonmetropolitan counties
34%, 26%, and 28% of respondents in large, medium, and small communities, respectively, indicated that they were first time buyers from at least one local food business.
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The COVID-19 pandemic led to unemployment, underemployment, and furloughs across the United States which resulted in food insecurity in many communities. The pandemic also disrupted local markets for farmers, growers, producers, and ranchers in the United States.
State departments of agriculture are working with federal agencies, corporations, and nonprofits to purchase food surpluses from farmers to distribute at food banks. This brief explores the unique strategies and partnerships four state departments of agriculture used to develop and administer these purchasing programs.
Over the past year, state departments of agriculture purchased more than $26 million worth of surplus agricultural products from local farmers, producers, dairymen, and ranchers to feed to people in their states. This was made possible thanks to existing food security networks, such as partnerships between food banks and farmer associations.
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Farm to school activities support local agriculture, while also providing nutrition and agriculture education. Special events, like Apple Crunch days, offer an opportunity for students to learn about local produce in a fun and engaging way with their friends and school communities.
Virtual and hybrid schools have upended traditional school meals and farm to school food efforts. In response, school districts, state agencies, and non-profits shifted Apple Crunch and other harvest celebrations to virtual events. This included field trips via livestreams, social media campaigns, taste test videos, and offering local produce through other means.
While there is nothing like going to an orchard or crunching into an apple with your friends, virtual Apple Crunch campaigns allowed more students and communities to get involved. The virtual platform also allowed a greater number of students to interact with state commissioners of agriculture and other high level partners.
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Each month we’re highlighting the work of Farmers Market and Local Food Promotion grant recipients.
 Adelante Mujeres is a non-profit organization based in Forest Grove, OR, with a mission of providing holistic education and empowerment to low-income Latina women. Adelante Mujeres wanted to expand the availability of culturally appropriate local foods at local farmers markets. Adelante Mujeres’s Local Food Promotion Program grant in 2016 helped support the creation of new market channels and educate farmers through workshops on food safety and marketing,.
The 15 Latino farmers who participated in the project were able to increase their sales over the grant period. Between the 2016 through the 2019 farming season, Adelante Mujeres’ CSA and Distributor had a total sales of $186,314. Increased sales and improved infrastructure have led to the long-term viability of Latino farmers in the area.
Sustainable Molokai is a non-profit based on the island of Molokai, Hawaii that works to restore ʻāina momona (abundance) to the land and people of the island. One of the primary ways the organization does this is through the Food Sovereignty Program, which aims to rebuild the local food system. Sustainable Molokai seeks to develop economic opportunities for its producers, while also fostering the health of its residents. Sustainable Molokai applied for and received a Local Food Promotion Program (LFPP) grant in 2016 to launch the Sustainable Molokai Mobile Market (SMMM).
By expanding market access via a mobile market that now brings fresh produce and eggs to four communities on the island on a weekly basis, Sustainable Molokai has helped local producers increase their earnings and improved residents’ access to locally grown foods. During the grant period:
- Market sales for 50 producers roughly doubled to approximately $400,000 during the project period.
- Total sales from 139 customers who used SNAP/EBT amounted to almost $100,000.
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