The USDA today announced program details of a framework to make the food supply chain fairer, more competitive, and more resilient. The announcement builds on and expands previous announcements and investments into transforming the food system in line with an Executive Order signed in February 2021.
The main goals of the USDA’s Food System Transformation framework are:
- Building a more resilient food supply chain that provides more and better market options for consumers and producers while reducing carbon pollution
- Creating a fairer food system that combats market dominance and helps producers and consumers gain more power in the marketplace by creating new, more and better local market options
- Making nutritious food more accessible and affordable for consumers
- Emphasizing equity
The program involves investments into food production, food processing, food aggregation and distribution, and markets and consumers.
Food production
- Up to $300 million in a new Organic Transition Initiative
- Up to $75 million to support urban agriculture
Food processing
- The Food Supply Chain Loan Guarantee Program
- Deployment of up to $375 million in support for independent meat and poultry processing plant projects
- Creation of a robust technical assistance network
- Investment of up to $275 million in partnership with lenders
- Investment of up to $100 million to support development of a pipeline of well-trained workers and safe workplaces in the processing sector
- $200 million for Food Safety Certification for Specialty Crops Program
- Up to $600 million in financial assistance to support food supply chain infrastructure
Food distribution and aggregation
- Investment of $400 million to create regional food business centers
- Investing $60 million to leverage increased commodity purchases through Farm-to-School
- Investing up to $90 million to prevent and reduce food loss and waste
Markets and consumers
- Increase funding to the Healthy Food Financing Initiative by $155 million
- An additional $50 million in the Senior Farmers Market Nutrition Program
- An additional $40 million in the GusNIP Produce Prescriptions Program
- $25 million to support SNAP technology improvements
- $100 million to create a new Healthy Food Incentive Fund
