WASHINGTON, June 23, 2023 – Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced today that the Biden-Harris The Administration will provide $2.7 billion to support American farmers, students participating in school feeding programs ,
and emergency food operations.
Funding through the USDA Commodity Credit Corporation will provide nearly $1.3 billion for states to purchase and distribute food to school meal programs and nearly $1 billion U.S. dollars for states to order goods from USDA suppliers for emergency food providers such as food banks and community kitchens as they face high demand and supply chain disruptions. The investment is part of a broader USDA effort to make nutritious foods grown by U.S. producers more accessible to families and students.
USDA is also providing up to $400 million in grants to support domestic fertilizer production capacity and reduce costs for producers.
“American agriculture continues to be resilient in the face of significant and unpredictable challenges,” Secretary Vilsack said. “To help ease the burden of these challenges, USDA is taking action to provide additional support to producers and food program operators. Today’s comprehensive set of investments will support the expansion of domestic Fertilizer capacity helps producers by reducing costs. Addressing these challenges will better prepare USDA, U.S. producers, and the customers we serve for the future.”
Food purchases for school meals:
USDA is providing nearly $1.3 billion in purchases to states and territories Domestic food and distribution to schools, with additional commodity support for schools totaling nearly $3.8 billion in meal costs since December 2021. This additional funding is needed to address rising food and labor costs that will continue to impact school feeding programs through the 2023-2024 school year, at which point schools will lose the additional temporary financial support mandated by Congress Bipartisan for the 2022-2023 school year
Keeping Children Educated Act 2022
.
Today’s action is among the many that USDA is taking to ensure schools have the support and resources they need to continue providing nutritious meals to help children grow, learn and thrive action one.
Merchandise Purchases for Emergency Food Vendors:
to help support millions of American families facing food problems and nutritional insecurity, and the USDA is providing nearly $1 billion to purchase commodities from American farmers to support emergency food networks. About one in nine U.S. households said they sometimes or often didn’t get enough to eat in the last week. The nationwide expiration of pandemic-related emergency SNAP grants, which temporarily provided about $3 billion in additional benefits to SNAP participants each month, left families without the assistance they depended on for nearly three years. In addition to the nearly $1 billion previously provided in September 2022, the latest round of funding will allow states to order U.S.-grown goods from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to serve emergency food suppliers. These investments and several other USDA actions to support emergency food providers will help them meet growing demand through FY 2024 and help ensure that no American is left without the nutrition they need.
Funds to increase domestic fertilizer production capacity:
USDA will provide up to an additional $400 million in grants to support domestic fertilizer production through the Fertilizer Product Expansion Program (FPEP). Through FPEP, USDA provides grants to help eligible applicants increase or otherwise expand the manufacture and processing of fertilizer and nutrient alternatives and their availability in the United States as a more reliable and affordable way to provide the nutrients needed for production Part of efforts to originate from U.S. farmers produce agricultural products, bring production and jobs back to the United States, promote competition, and support U.S. goods and services. The USDA had previously allocated $500 million for these awards, but saw significant interest and demand in the first two funding rounds, with around $3 billion in applications received. USDA also announced today that it will provide $30 million in grants under the first round of FPEP and is seeking public comment on 66 potentially viable projects under the second round of the program. More details can be found at this link.
USDA impacts the lives of all Americans every day in many positive ways. Under the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming the U.S. food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, promoting competition and fairer markets for all producers, and ensuring safe access for all communities , healthy and nutritious food, using climate-smart food and forestry practices to build new markets and revenue streams for farmers and producers, making historic investments in rural America’s infrastructure and clean energy capabilities, and Build more of the workforce to commit to fair American representation across the sector. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.
#
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.
