The USDA would create its third version of the food box intended to feed hungry Americans under legislation introduced by House Appropriations chairwoman Rosa DeLauro [D-CT] on Tuesday. The bill would require the USDA to provide boxes of fresh fruit and vegetables to schools, food pantries, and youth organizations for distribution.
The program would be patterned somewhat on the Farmers to Families Food Box program that was the Trump administration’s response to hunger in America during the pandemic. It spent roughly $5.5 billion in one year to buy, package and deliver 174 million boxes of fruit, vegetables, cooked pork and chicken, and dairy products to food banks, churches and other nonprofit groups.
The program expired at the end of May and was replaced by a smaller-scale program to buy boxes of fresh produce for distribution to food banks through a longstanding USDA program.
“In my view, the program should have been strengthened and continued as a way to get healthier foods to families and as an investment in our local producers and specialty crop growers, who traditionally fall outside of USDA’s commodity support,” said DeLauro, who announced the bill at the same time the United Fresh Produce Association met in Washington.
DeLauro’s office said the bill would require USDA to partner with growers, distributors, and food hubs to provide fresh, U.S.-grown fruits and vegetables to community organizations. It would also prioritize purchases from socially disadvantaged farmers and local and regional food systems.
The text of the Fresh Produce Procurement Reform Act is available here.
"vegetable" - Google News
September 23, 2021 at 02:56AM
https://ift.tt/2Zcmm9J
Rep. DeLauro proposes fruit-and-vegetable box giveaway - Successful Farming
"vegetable" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2CyIOeE
https://ift.tt/3aVzfVV
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Rep. DeLauro proposes fruit-and-vegetable box giveaway - Successful Farming"
Post a Comment