INDIANAPOLIS - The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) on Monday announced it has partnered with the Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) to award $6,714,042 for 17 projects through the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program (RFSI).
These grants will build resilience across the middle of the supply chain while strengthening local and regional food systems, according to a provided news release.
“Indiana farmers work hard to produce millions of pounds of fruits, vegetables and other pantry staples each year that are eventually shipped across state lines or do not even make it to market,” Lt. Gov. Micah Beckwith, Indiana’s secretary of agriculture and rural development, said. “This grant funding will ensure more Hoosiers are fed by Hoosiers and that these organizations can better serve their communities.”
The local funded projects are as follows:
• J.L. Hawkins Farm, Wabash County, will utilize Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure grant funds to overcome inadequate aggregation/co-packing, storage and distribution facilities by constructing an on-farm building and to overcome inadequate post-harvest processing facilities by upgrading a current open-air post-harvest processing area.
• Crystal Lake LLC, Kosciusko County, will use the funds for the installation of new equipment that will allow Crystal Lake to produce extended shelf-life egg products and additional hard cook packaging at their plant located in Kosciusko County. Rather than relying on co-packers located in other states, this project will create a local co-packer and pasteurizer option for Crystal Lake and other local egg producers.
• Clay Bottom Farm, Elkhart County, will purchase and utilize a delivery vehicle to aggregate and distribute 10,000 pounds of vegetables annually from four regional farms to three wholesale outlets. With this vehicle, Clay Bottom Farm will work with local growers of Elkhart Country to source from and introduce new produce to the market, increase demand for locally sourced food and fill area gaps and unmet market demand. Clay Bottom Farm's delivery vehicle will benefit a minimum of ten local farmers and producers. This will enhance market opportunities for local farmers by creating jobs in the middle of the supply chain, ensuring the delivery van meets regulations and increases the local food supply to various middle-of-the-supply chain outlets.
“These seventeen organizations already do so much for their communities, and we are grateful that alongside USDA we could support them even further,” said Don Lamb, Indiana State Department of Agriculture director. “This funding will ensure food grown in local communities stays in local communities and this will allow our Hoosier farmers to increase their capacity and continue to build their businesses.”
This awarded funding is part of the $420 million available through the RFSI Grant program to build capacity within the middle of the supply chain and support local and regional producers. It is funded by USDA AMS. Through this program, AMS has entered into cooperative agreements with state agencies, commissions, or departments responsible for agriculture, commercial food processing, seafood, or food system and distribution activities or commerce activities in states or U.S. territories.
For more information, visit the AMS RFSI webpage at https://www.ams.usda.gov/services/grants/rfsi/rfsi-rfa-status.