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As local farmers ‘do more with less' after federal funding cuts, bipartisan bill aims to restore support
In the months since the Trump administration abruptly
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In New England, Massachusetts lost the most, with $18.5 million canceled, followed by Connecticut at $9.3 million, Maine at $4 million, New Hampshire at $2.7 million, and Vermont, at $1.7 million.
Now a bill aimed at restoring federal support for the programs is being co-sponsored by
US Senator Jack Reed,
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The Strengthening Local Food Security Act was
'You're providing good nutrition for people who need it, particularly children, and you're also supporting one of our most important local industries: farming and fishing," said US Senator Jack Reed.
Rod Lamkey/Associated Press
Reed told the Globe on Wednesday there was no problem finding bipartisan support. Justice and his staff were very enthusiastic. West Virginia had lost $6 million in grant cuts.
'Senator Justice pointed out this is going to be very beneficial to his farmers and his fishing people,' Reed said. 'He sees the real benefit to supporting local industry and providing for people who are suffering from food shortages.'
West Virginia has a higher percentage of households that are food insecure: 13.7 percent, among the highest in the nation, compared to 9.7 percent of households in Rhode Island, according to the US Department of Agriculture.
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Reed said the canceled grant programs, which
were started under the Biden administration, were 'a very, very smart' way to tackle hunger while supporting local farmers and fisheries, and strengthening the local food system overall.
Just in Rhode Island, about 68,000 people benefited from the food, as well as thousands of schoolchildren, he said.
'So, it's a win-win,' Reed said. 'You're providing good nutrition for people who need it, particularly children, and you're also supporting one of our most important local industries: farming and fishing.'
The legislation is supported by the National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition, National Farmers Union, the National Association of State Departments of Agriculture, and the Farm Credit Council. The Rhode Island Community Food Bank, Farm Fresh Rhode Island, and the Rhode Island Food Policy Council are also in support.
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'This new bill by Jack Reed will actually get fresh healthy affordable food grown by low-income farmers into their communities,' DeVos said. 'When people have control of the food system, they make sure their communities are fed. Jack Reed's bill makes sure people will get fed.'
The legislation gives her hope. But in the meantime, DeVos said, she is bracing to lose about $500,000 in grants from the US Department of Agriculture that are used to support the small farmers.
'You get used to the chaos of it,' DeVos said. 'We're just trying to manage inside the unreliability of it all and not being surprised when something is unreliable.'
Ben Torpey, manager at Urban Edge Farm, left, Margaret DeVos, executive director of the Southside Community Land Trust, center, and Kakeena Castro, food program coordinator, stand in their packing room surrounded by storage bins.
Erin Clark/Globe Staff
Southside Community Land Trust owns Urban Edge Farm in Cranston, where about 35 farmers pay a fee to use farm equipment, greenhouses, and supplies. DeVos said that sharing the infrastructure gives these micro-farms a foothold.
'We are trying to make it possible for them to grow food, and that's what the USDA does to support farmers and lower their operating costs,' she said.
But now, the federal office that supplied the grants supporting that program is gone. So are the staff who worked on the grants. It's unclear if those grants still exist.
'We needed to tighten the belt to see what to do to survive long-term,' said Jesse Rye, the executive director at Farm Fresh RI, the nonprofit
that managed the USDA grants in Rhode Island.
Farm Fresh laid off 15 people from its staff of 50, including members from the AmeriCorps program. This year's budget is $6.5 million, down from $8 million.
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They are 'doing more with less,' Rye said, though, 'the ability to do the work at a larger scale has been hindered.'
T Blia Moua, a Hmong immigrant from Providence, waters seedlings in a greenhouse at Urban Edge Farm in Cranston, R.I., in March.
Erin Clark/Globe Staff
Local philanthropic organizations have stepped in to help, including the Rhode Island Foundation and the
The Department of Health also gave funding for Farm Fresh to work with early childhood centers, by filling boxes with produce for snacks at the centers or for the families, Rye said.
Without the federal funding, there are half as many schools — 23 so far — that are signed on to buy local food for their cafeterias. 'The numbers are smaller than they were, but there are schools that care about this and given opportunities could make a big impact,' Rye said.
Rye called Reed's legislation 'a bright spot.'
'Seeing people in red states and blue states get behind local farmers and local schools … it feels like such a win," he said.
Amanda Milkovits can be reached at
