The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has initiated the Regional Food Business Centers Program to enhance the resilience of the nation’s food systems. This program, funded by the American Rescue Plan with $400 million over five years, aims to bolster local agriculture and elevate the role of small and mid-sized farm businesses. It will establish 12 hubs across the United States and its territories, including tribal lands, to assist these businesses in scaling their operations.
USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt expressed the program’s commitment to creating a more diverse and resilient food system. The initiative is expected to benefit local producers by connecting them with consumers and enhancing the economic prospects of family farmers.
These Regional Food Business Centers will function as virtual hubs, providing crucial technical assistance and funding opportunities to small and mid-sized farm businesses, processors, aggregators, and distributors. The selected finalists for these centers, announced in May, include a mix of land grant universities, economic development corporations, producer associations, and nonprofits. The centers will manage awards ranging from $15 to $50 million, supporting a variety of activities from capacity building to direct grants for farming projects.
The program’s Business Builder grants, capped at $100,000, are intended to cover a range of activities, including business planning, product development, processing, and supply chain coordination. Dawn Thilmany McFadden, director of the Northwest and Rocky Mountain USDA Regional Food Business Center, highlighted the program’s role in streamlining funding processes for effective local initiatives.
Each regional center is conducting thorough assessments to tailor their outreach and programming to the specific needs of their agricultural communities. These initiatives aim to foster diverse agricultural practices across the country, from urban agriculture in the Northeast to specialty product development in Appalachia.
The National Intertribal Food Business Center, led by the Intertribal Agriculture Council, focuses on the unique needs of Native farmers and food producers. It aims to overcome historical challenges and provide substantial support for regionalizing Native food systems.
In addition to addressing specific regional needs, the USDA program is committed to ensuring outreach activities serve historically underserved, underrepresented, and underfunded groups. This includes efforts to improve access to credit and investment for these groups.
The program reflects USDA’s broader objective of building a more equitable food system that caters to the diverse agricultural landscape of America. Moffitt emphasized the potential of the program to revive the farming sector, which has seen a significant reduction in the number of farms since 1980.
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