From the Alabama Department of Agriculture & Industries:
MONTGOMERY, AL – Alabama will receive almost $474,000 in funding to distribute to 19 specific project initiatives that have been approved as part of USDA’s 2014 Specialty Crop Block Grant (SCBG) Program awards.
“We are pleased to partner with USDA and administer the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program in Alabama,” said Commissioner of Agriculture and Industries John McMillan. “We are excited about many of the 2014 projects and are encouraged that these projects will enhance production, consumption and research of specialty crops in Alabama.”
All Alabama project recipients will attend a kickoff meeting on October 9, 2014, at the State Department of Agriculture and Industries headquarters in Montgomery. At this meeting, official contracts will be signed and the specific details of each project’s plan of action will be discussed.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced yesterday that nationwide nearly $118 million in Specialty Crop Block Grants will be awarded to strengthen markets for specialty crops, such as fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, horticulture, and nursery crops. The grants were authorized through the 2014 Farm Bill as part of an effort to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops and provide resources to strengthen American agriculture.
“Specialty crop grants provide a major boost to the rural economies,” said Secretary Vilsack. “This announcement is another example of how USDA is implementing the Farm Bill to deliver critical tools producers need to successfully grow, process and market high quality products.”
Sales of specialty crops total nearly $65 billion per year, making them a critical part of the U.S. economy. The Specialty Crop Block Grant Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), will provide $66 million to state departments of agriculture for projects that help support specialty crop growers, including locally grown fruits and vegetables, through research and programs to increase demand.
For additional grant information on the awardees, please follow the grant program link in this release SCBGP Awards.
For more information on Alabama’s SCBG program, contact Hassey Brooks at Hassey.Brooks@agi.alabama.gov or by phone at 334.240-3877.