PROVIDENCE – The R.I. Department of Environmental Management has awarded more than $1 million in Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure grants to four local organizations to support the development of locally grown products and support expanded capacity for the aggregation, processing, manufacturing, storing, transporting, wholesaling and distribution of locally produced food products, excluding meat and poultry, according to an agency news release.
Managed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the program is funded through the federal American Rescue Plan Act.
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Sen. Jack Reed, D-R.I., said these funds “will strengthen the resilience in Rhode Island’s food system and create new revenue streams for small and midsized farmers and producers.”
“This federal investment will benefit food producers statewide and help get more fresh, Rhode Island-grown food and products to tables, grocery stores and restaurants across the region and beyond,” he said.
According to the 2022 Census of Agriculture, Rhode Island has the highest percentage of beginning farmers in the country.
“Families in every corner of the state should have access to affordable, healthy food,” said Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I.
“Providing grants to local food businesses and producers is essential to DEM’s mission of fostering a more resilient, locally driven food system,” said RIDEM Director Terry Gray, calling the grants “a step forward in strengthening Rhode Island’s food security and supply chain resilience.”
The grants were awarded to the following:
- Southside Community Land Trust: $519,939 to develop the Cranston Food Hub, a new facility at Urban Edge Farm that will streamline and expand SCLT’s capacity to aggregate, process, store and distribute locally sourced and culturally familiar produce.
- Farm Fresh Rhode Island: $193,463 to upgrade equipment, expand processing capabilities and modernize information technology systems to build resilience in the center of the supply chain and increase new market opportunities for state and regional farmers with wholesale and institutional customers.
- The Hard-Pressed Cider Co.: $282,844 to construct a new apple cider production facility at its farm.
- Brandon Family Farm: $101, 670 to make several upgrades and additions to a farm building that will allow it to aggregate and distribute more than 75 tons of produce annually through its purchasing agreement with several local farms.
Christopher Allen is a PBN staff writer. You may contact him at Allen@PBN.com.
