On Tuesday, December 17, NSAC delivered a letter to members of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees, urging them to support sustainable agriculture priorities in the final fiscal year 2014 appropriations legislation. The Committees are currently working to finalize legislation that would fund the government for the rest of FY 2014. Both Committees passed their […]
Rural Development
NSAC Releases Farmers’ Guide to Value-Added Producer Grants
Whether enabling dairy farmers in Nebraska to expand their line of fluid milk products or allowing an organic grain farmer in Missouri to understand the feasibility of equipment purchases for on-farm processing, the Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG) program has been helping thousands of farmers around the country with expanding their customer base and income by […]
Rural Coop Development Grants Include Local Food and Food Hubs
Continuing a busy week of announcements from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on grant awards that are building rural economies and local food production and markets, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced more than $6 million in grants to 34 organizations from 24 states through the Rural Cooperative Development Grant (RCDG) program. Established in the […]
Wind, Solar, Efficiency Grants Awarded to Farmers
U.S. Agriculture Secretary Vilsack has announced that 424 projects across the country will receive funding for energy efficiency and renewable energy system investments through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). REAP provides financial support, through grants and loan guarantees, to agricultural producers and rural small businesses looking to invest in energy efficiency and renewable […]
Farm Bill is the Rural Bill Too
Today, following on the heels of yesterday’s first meeting of the Farm Bill conference, NSAC joined 28 other national, regional, and state-based organizations working to bolster rural community and economic development in a letter delivered to House and Senate conferees urging them to “provide a robust Rural Development title that promotes economic growth and stability in rural areas.” […]
New Awards Support Innovative Local and Regional Food Initiatives
A recent announcement by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s CDFI Fund of its financial and technical assistance awards includes CDFI recipients who plan to focus their efforts on improving both healthy food access and local and regional food systems. Of a total of $172 million in CDFI Fund awards to 191 organizations, 10 awards totaling […]
What’s At Stake? Local Foods and Renewable Energy
Last fall, Congress allowed the farm bill to expire without a new bill to take its place. Instead, Congressional leaders cobbled together an awful and temporary extension of the old farm bill on New Year’s Eve that shut down a number of innovative programs indefinitely. As of October 1, Congress has once again allowed the […]
Rural Development Financing Boosts Local Food Business Incubation
USDA Rural Development grant and loan awards announced Last week, at the White House Rural Council’s Forum on Regional Innovation, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced loan and grant awards to create jobs and support regional economic development. The White House Rural Council coordinates the Obama Administration’s efforts to improve the effectiveness of federal programs serving […]
Funds Available for Rural Microenterprise
Today, the USDA announced in the Federal Register the availability of funds totaling approximately $12.2 million for the Rural Microentrepreneur Assistance Program (RMAP) for fiscal year 2013. RMAP, an NSAC priority program, is a USDA rural development program created by the 2008 Farm Bill that provides loans and grants to Microenterprise Development Organizations (MDOs), which […]
Conservation, Rural Development, and Fair Markets & Contracts – Groups Weigh In on Farm Bill
This week NSAC signed onto letters to Congress concerning conservation, rural development, and fair competition provisions of the House and Senate farm bills, ahead of what could still possibly be an August replete with Agriculture Committee staff meetings to begin to work out the details of a final farm bill. Conservation NSAC was one of […]
Rural Business Enterprise Grants Awarded to Farmers’ Markets, Food Hubs, Microlending
Yesterday, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced funding through the Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) program to support small and emerging rural businesses in the context of a broader effort to strengthen the rural economy. The awards totaled over $6.5 million dollars for 134 projects in thirty states and Puerto Rico. Earlier this summer, USDA awarded […]
House Rules Committee Kills Key Farm Bill Amendments
Very early on the morning of Wednesday, June 19, the House Rules Committee decided upon which amendments members of the House of Representatives will vote on during House considering of the 2013 Farm Bill today, tomorrow, and perhaps into next week. The final list includes 103 amendments, but excludes several of the most important amendments […]
Rural Enterprise Grants Include Local Food Awards
In celebration of National Small Business Week, the USDA announced the funding recipients for the Rural Business Enterprise Grants (RBEGs). The USDA awarded 54 recipients in 21 states totaling $4.7 million in investment for rural small businesses. RBEGs finance and facilitate development of small and emerging rural businesses to boost local, rural economies. This year, […]
House Subcommittee Passes 2014 Agriculture Funding Bill
The House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee yesterday approved its fiscal year (FY) 2014 agriculture appropriations bill by voice vote. The bill sets discretionary spending at $19.5 billion, which is $1.3 billion below the FY 2013 enacted level but roughly equal to the FY 2013 enacted level minus sequestration (across-the-board budget cuts imposed in FY 2013 following […]
Rural Coop Development Grants Available
The USDA Agricultural Marketing Service has announced the availability of $6.5 million as part of its Rural Cooperative Development Grant (RCDG) program. The Notice of Funding Availability was published in the May 23 Federal Register. The goal of RCDG is to improve the economic condition of rural areas through the use of cooperative development. Grants […]
USDA Taking Rural Business Opportunity Grant Applications
USDA has issued a notice that the Rural Development Agency is taking applications for Rural Business Opportunity Grants (RBOG). RBOG funds feasibility studies, strategic planning, leadership training and other services and activities that can foster the creation of businesses and jobs in rural areas. Eligible applicants include public entities, non-profit organizations, institutions of higher education, […]
Farmers and Ranchers Awarded Value-Added Grants for New Markets and Products
On May 1, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced Value-Added Producer Grant Program (VAPG) awards to over 110 agricultural producers. The grant awards totaled nearly $16.8 million. The funding came from the $14 million appropriation for VAPG in the FY 2012 Appropriations Bill as well as $2.8 million from earlier years. The Value-Added Producer Grants (VAPG) […]
For Immediate Release: Grants for Farm and Rural Business Development Announced
For Immediate Release May 2, 2013 Contact: Ferd Hoefner, 202-547-5754 Grants for Farm and Rural Business Development Announced Washington, D.C., May 2, 2013 – Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced that over 110 agricultural producers from 43 states will receive nearly $16.8 million in grants from the 2012 round of the Value-Added Producer Grants program. […]
House Subcommittee Debates 2014 Farm and Food Funding
Over the last two weeks, the House Agriculture Appropriations Subcommittee held a series of hearings to examine the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s and the Food and Drug Administration’s budget requests for fiscal year (FY) 2014. We previously posted about the first Subcommittee hearing of the year, which featured Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, and the second […]
President’s 2014 Budget: Overview and Department of Agriculture
On Wednesday, April 10, President Obama released his budget request for Fiscal Year (FY) 2014. In this year’s ongoing budget saga, the White House is billing its proposal as a step towards reaching a “grand bargain” with Republicans over taxes and spending. (For more on the “grand bargain,” see a previous blog post.) Over ten weeks […]
Rural Development Progress Report for Fiscal Year 2012
On January 9, USDA released their Rural Development Progress Report for Fiscal Year 2012. The report highlights success stories from USDA Rural Development’s active portfolio, including the following rural business development programs: $1 billion in Business and Industry loan guarantees $25.5 million in Rural Business Enterprise Grants $50.3 million in Rural Economic Development loans and […]
Stories from the Field: Boosting the Economy in Rural Nebraska
Due to Congressional inaction, the 2008 Farm Bill has expired without a new bill or extension to take its place. In the absence of a farm bill, numerous innovative programs that invest in sustainable agriculture systems are shut down and left without funding. This post is part of our 10-week blog series that features both […]
What’s at Stake: Rural Economic Development
Due to Congressional inaction, the 2008 Farm Bill has expired without a new bill or extension to take its place. In the absence of a farm bill, numerous innovative programs that invest in sustainable agriculture systems are shut down and left without mandatory funding. This is the sixth post in our 10-week “What’s at Stake?” […]
Farm Energy: USDA Announces $16 Million in Rural Energy Grants
On Friday, October 19, USDA announced that it is awarding $16 million in grant and loan awards in FY 2012 through the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). The award will fund 244 projects aimed at helping farmers, ranchers, and small businesses conserve energy and produce renewable energy. In August of this year, USDA awarded […]