October 14, 2020
Local food systems and direct-to-consumer marketing through farmers markets, farm stands, and Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs) programs have flourished across the country over the past several decades. Once viewed as a fad or niche part of the food sector, local food systems and direct marketing agriculture are now an integral part of American agriculture and […]
June 18, 2020
In late April, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the highly anticipated Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP), a two pronged plan the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) would implement to distribute $23.5 billion in Congressionally provided aid to farmers impacted by the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. CFAP consists of two distinct programs: $16 billion in direct […]
May 28, 2020
Americans’ interest in knowing more about where, how, and by whom their food is produced has been growing for many years and the coronavirus pandemic has shown new light on the serious shortcomings in our highly concentrated food production system. Along with the rise of the local food movement there has also been a building […]
May 22, 2020
USDA recently announced details of the new Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) which will open for enrollment on May 26, 2020. CFAP will provide $16 billion in aid to farmers who suffered economic losses due to the pandemic. NSAC is glad to see relief begin to flow to farmers, but there are several shortcomings in the program that will make it more difficult for some farmers to seek relief. In this blog, we break down what farmers need to know about this new program.
May 15, 2020
As farmers and communities across the country continue to struggle to adapt to the new normal that is life amidst a global pandemic, Congress set the stage this week for the fourth round of federal aid to combat this crisis. And while previous aid packages have addressed some of the most urgent relief, our nation’s […]
April 29, 2020
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted our country’s food system from farm to fork. Social distancing and other response strategies have upended agricultural markets throughout the country, including local and regional markets; and transformed the way individuals and families shop for, purchase and consume food. That transformation has brought with it a big uptick of interest […]
April 28, 2020
USDA recently announced plans to distribute $19 billion in aid to farmers impacted by COVID, raising serious concerns about which farmers will benefit.
April 22, 2020
Editor’s Note: The RFP has now been published and can be accessed below. We will continue to update this post as more information and resources become available. Last updated 4/27 at 5:02pm Late on a Friday night (4/17), Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the highly anticipated plan for how the U.S. Department of Agriculture […]
March 31, 2020
Local and regional food economy entrepreneurs and organizations received some long-awaited news earlier in March – the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) finally released the Request for Applications (RFA) for the Regional Food Systems Partnership (RFSP) Program. RFSP is a new program that supports foodshed-level approaches to developing regional food economies. […]
March 26, 2020
As farmers and communities all across the country continue to deal with the impacts of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, Congress has been working around the clock to pass another round of emergency aid – this time targeted at small businesses and those who have lost income as a result of the crisis (including farmers), as […]