USDA has revealed plans to create 12 Regional Food Business Centers that will provide national coverage coordination, technical assistance, and capacity building to help farmers, ranchers, and other food businesses access new markets and navigate government resources.
“The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to transforming our food system to one that offers new market opportunities to small and mid-sized farming operations through a strengthened local and regional food system,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in a statement. “The Regional Food Business Centers, along with investments through the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program will create new and expanded local market opportunities which will improve farm income, create good paying jobs and build greater resilience in our overall food system.”
The locations will support producers by providing localized assistance to access a variety of markets, including linking producers to wholesalers and distributors, according to USDA. By strengthening connections between rural and urban areas, the Regional Food Business Centers will drive economic opportunities across the region, creating a more diversified and resilient food system, particularly among historically underinvested communities.
“USDA recognizes that local and regional food systems are essential to the overall food supply chain and the new Regional Food Business Centers are the cornerstone of our efforts to support them,” said Under Secretary for marketing and regulatory programs, Jenny Lester Moffitt, in a statement. “The resources and diverse knowledge offered through the Centers will make the opportunities available through dozens of USDA programs more accessible to small and mid-sized producers and food and farm businesses.”
The USDA also announced a $420 million Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program to fund projects designed to build resilience across the middle of the supply chain and strengthen local and regional food systems.
“The Centers’ technical assistance coupled with the additional funding for processing capacity and infrastructure improvements through the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure program is bringing us many steps closer to reaching the goals of the Food System Transformation framework,” said Moffitt.
The Department Food System Transformation strategy intends to modify the food system to benefit consumers, producers, and rural communities by increasing access to markets and increasing opportunities for small-, and mid-sized producers.
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