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Supporting our local food system
Supporting our state’s local food system is one of the biggest priorities of the Focus on Food initiative. At WSDA, we want to support farmers and food producers in Washington. That’s because a strong food system means more people in our state will have access to high-quality, local food.
In this edition of the Focus on Food newsletter, we’ll share about recent grant awards, a Washington food producer that is working to get Washington beef into local schools, and more. We hope you enjoy it.
Partner spotlight: Colvin Ranch
Colvin Ranch is connecting with nearby schools to provide locally produced beef to serve high-quality hamburgers in student lunches. Owner Jennifer Colvin explains their partnership with the WSDA Farm to School program has helped her business develop a relationship with schools that is beneficial to everyone involved. “We love working with schools,” says Colvin. “We love supplying local beef to local kids in local schools. The kids know they are getting local beef, it tastes better, and the staff and kids are excited.”
Support from the Farm to School program helps Washington food producers, like Colvin Ranch, navigate the process of selling to school districts. Colvin says the partnerships they’ve developed through the Farm to School program have provided her business with a regular income stream, while also providing high-quality, local food to children in the community.
Looking ahead, Colvin Ranch aims to serve more schools. “We’re also looking at our offerings to see how we can make it easier for schools to order from us,” she added. The ranch is also keen to develop educational materials about the benefits of buying from local farms, helping students learn about where their food comes from.
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Share your insights to help shape Washington's food systems
WSDA is committed to community engagement and relationship building through two-way communication and informed dialogue. We are pleased to invite food system stakeholders to share your input in our new comment form to help WSDA gather information about broad food system concerns and priorities, including technical support, funding opportunities, and more.
We invite the following individuals and groups in Washington to submit comments:
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Farmers and farm workers
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Food business owners and workers
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Historically underrepresented groups and community advocates
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Food-related nonprofit organizations, including hunger relief
The comment form takes about 10 minutes to complete and will be open continuously. WSDA staff will review all comments on a monthly basis to share with program managers and leadership.
Thank you for sharing your insights to help shape our work and address the needs of the people and organizations that make up Washington’s food systems.
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Fuel cost reimbursement program for farmers
The Washington State Department of Licensing (DOL) has a new program to help farmers with fuel costs. Starting August 26, 2024, farmers can apply for the Agriculture Support Program (ASP). This program offers payments from $600 to $4,500 for fuel bought between January 1 and December 31, 2023.
To prepare, start gathering information about your fuel purchases and usage in 2023. The application will ask if you bought fuel for farming and how much you used that year. You also need to show proof that you are a farmer or transporter.
Applications will be processed in the order received, so apply early!
DOL will send more details by early August. We’ll also share the link to the application in this newsletter when it’s available.
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WSDA awards $1.5 million in grants to strengthen
Washington state’s local food system
Local Food System Infrastructure (LFSI) Grants will support local food system infrastructure, supply chains, and market access for farms, food processors, food distributors, and meat processors. WSDA funded a total of 40 projects that strengthen linkages along the regional food supply chain, encourage collaboration, and create new market opportunities for farmers, ranchers, and food business entrepreneurs.
Applicants ranged from farmers, ranchers, food processors, food distributors, and other small businesses and organizations that aggregate, process, manufacture, transport, store, or sell foods that have been grown, caught, or raised in Washington state.
“We continue to be inspired by how these grant projects are developing the capacity of our regional food economy,” Laura Raymond, manager of the WSDA Regional Markets Program, said. “Each proposal represented an opportunity to build a more vibrant and resilient local food system.”
Grant amounts ranged from $7,000 to $75,000. Recipients will use these grant funds to improve local food system post-harvest infrastructure and market access with equipment, facility improvements, supply chain and market access coordination, food safety improvements, workforce development, and related operating costs.
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USDA Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program awardees
Congratulations to the six awardees in Washington selected for a 2024 USDA Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant!
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Boys & Girls Clubs of the Columbia Basin—$49,992
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City of Seattle, Office of Sustainability and Environment—$99,736
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Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation—$43,125
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Federal Way Public Schools—$95,737
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Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction—$136,078
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Tilth Alliance—$98,408
Selected projects include a wide variety of farm to school activities, including agriculture education and school gardens, support for procurement from underrepresented farmers and ranchers, education on native foods and development of culturally-relevant curriculum, incorporation of fresh fish and game into school meals, expansion of garden to cafeteria, creation of a statewide Harvest of the Month toolkit, and training to prepare more producers to participate in farm to school. See the USDA press release for more details.
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