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WASHINGTON, December 14, 2022 – The US Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) today announced an investment of nearly $10 million through the Community Projects Competitive Grants Program (CFPCGP). This funding, made possible through the America’s Rescue Plan Act, strengthens USDA’s food and nutrition security efforts by promoting communities’ self-reliance in providing for the unique food needs of their community members.
Community food projects, driven by a network of stakeholders from across the food system, support small and medium farmers, producers and processors in urban, rural, tribal and island areas. The program gives communities a voice in food system decisions and supports local food markets to fully benefit the community, increase food and nutrition security, and stimulate the local economy.
CFPCGP funds projects that meet the food needs of low-income individuals through food distribution, community outreach, or improved food access. The program aims to increase community self-reliance by promoting comprehensive responses to local food access, farm and nutrition issues; meeting specific state, local food and agriculture needs, including providing operational equipment; planning long-term solutions; and creating innovative marketing activities that mutually benefit agricultural producers and low-income consumers.
“Community nutrition projects are already making a huge impact across the nation by increasing access to and consumption of nutritious local food, advancing workforce development and supporting entrepreneurship,” said NIFA Acting Director Dr. Dionne Toombs. “This funding will enable NIFA to support even more community food projects that address specific state, tribal, island, local or neighborhood food and agriculture needs to improve and develop infrastructure while reducing barriers to food access and increasing security of food and nutrition for communities across the nation.”
Funds will be invested in 29 local food projects in fiscal year 2022. Request to submit a request. The applications were highly ranked but could not be funded at the time due to budget constraints. Examples of newly funded projects include:
- ‘Aina Ho’okupu O Kilauea in Kilauea, Hawaiiwill expand the Vulnerable Local Food Systems Project in Kauai to transform its produce box aggregation and delivery system into a sustainable, self-funded program that provides 200 produce boxes per week to those in need.
- Through its “Nourishing Acadiana: Creating a More Robust Local Food System by Empowering Local Farmers and Families,” Second Harvest New Orleans, Louisiana, will partner with farmers, non-profit organizations, agencies and community members to achieve the common goals of connecting growers and consumers; providing support for black, indigenous and colored farmers; positively affect health outcomes; and creating a more sustainable local food system.
- Preble Street, a social service agency in Portland, Minewill work with community stakeholders to improve food and nutrition security and access to local food in low-income communities and among people experiencing homelessness.
- Just Roots, Inc., in Greenfield, Massachusettswill expand its capacity to provide year-round healthy, local food to low-income and food-insecure populations in Western Massachusetts, serving as a connection between local farms and consumers and fostering relationships between land, food and each other.
- The Texas Tribal Bison Project in Wilderness, Texaswill provide indigenous communities in South Central Texas with increased access to food and education about traditional foodways.
- Lopez Island Family Resource Center on Lopez Island, Washingtonwill build community food security and employment opportunities within its regional food system by paying salaries at its local food bank, funding efforts to encourage participation in the Food Preservation Program and the Value-Added Business Mentor Project, and upgrading kitchen equipment.
NIFA invests in and advances agricultural research, education and extension across the country to make transformative discoveries that solve societal challenges. NIFA supports initiatives that ensure the long-term sustainability of agriculture and takes an integrated approach to ensure that breakthroughs in agricultural science and technology reach the people who can put them into practice. In fiscal year 2022, NIFA’s total investment was $2.2 billion.
Visit us on Twitter: @USDA_NIFA and LinkedIn: USDA-NIFA. To learn more about NIFA’s impact on agricultural science (searchable by state or keyword), visit www.nifa.usda.gov/impacts.
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USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.
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