Community Food Project Investment

Dan This Land of Ours

Making an investment in community food projects. That’s coming up on This Land of Ours. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced an investment of nearly $10 million through the Community Food Projects Competitive Grants Program (CFPCGP). This funding, made possible through the American Rescue Plan Act, bolsters USDA’s food and nutrition security …

USDA Initiative to Create More and Better Market Opportunities

Dan Beef, Poultry, USDA

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), as part of their efforts to address food systems challenges arising from the pandemic as well as those going back decades, has announced plans for another $100 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act. The funding would leverage hundreds of millions more in lending through community and private sector lenders to expand …

Stabenow Urges USDA to Implement Food and Ag Supply Chain Provisions

Dan Economy

Senate Agriculture Committee Chair Debbie Stabenow is urging the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to implement American Rescue Plan provisions to protect food and farm workers. In a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, Stabenow states the American Rescue Plan “included resources so that the people who power our food and ag supply chain are protected and have the resources they …

Commissioner Nikki Fried Joins USDA Event on American Rescue Plan Debt Relief for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers

Dan Economy, Florida, USDA

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried joined U.S. Department of Agriculture Deputy Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Monica Rainge, U.S. Representative Al Lawson, Jr. (FL-5), and others to highlight historic American Rescue Plan provisions that provide $4 billion in debt relief to socially disadvantaged farmers, ranchers, and growers. They were joined at the Florida A&M University (FAMU) Research and Extension Center in Quincy, Florida by FAMU President Larry Robinson, Ph.D., …

USDA Announces Plan for Black Farmer Payments

Dan Economy, USDA-FSA

The USDA says it plans to make debt relief available to Black farmers. The announcement came one day before Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack participated in a roundtable discussion with Black farmers in Georgia. A spokesman says Vilsack will be traveling to other states to discuss the plan in the weeks ahead. Late last week, the Farm Service Agency published the …

USDA Programs Designed to Help Various Producers

Dan USDA-FSA

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) wants to remind producers the American Rescue Plan includes provisions for USDA to pay up to 120% of loan balances, as of January 1, 2021, for Farm Service Agency (FSA) Direct and Guaranteed Farm Loans and Farm Storage Facility Loans debt relief to any socially disadvantaged producer who has a qualifying loan with FSA. In the …

Ag Secretary Tom Vilsack on Passage of the American Rescue Plan Act

Dan Economy, Legislative, USDA

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack made the following statement today on the passage of the American Rescue Plan Act by the U.S. Congress. The bill now goes to President Biden for his signature. For a detailed review, see the USDA fact sheet (see below). “President Biden wasted no time fulfilling his pledge to the American people to bring substantial financial relief within …