BLOOMINGTON — Illinois will use $14. 4 million of U. S. Department of Agriculture investmentThe U. S. government is expected to buy produced food and distribute it to those in need, according to state officials.
The two-year program will involve direct purchases from eligible farmers and aggregation sites where goods will be pooled and distributed to schools, nonprofits and food banks.
The Illinois Department of Agriculture and the Illinois Department of Human Services won the cash as part of a cooperative agreement for the purchase of local food with USDA. Under the agreement, the government will purchase new processed products, proteins and foods at a fair market price from the underserved. farmers.
To expand an implementation plan, a plan-making committee will hold regional listening sessions next year facilitated through the University of Illinois extension, said Kristi Jones, Illinois’ deputy director of agriculture. Planning committee members come with representatives from the Illinois Farm Bureau, Illinois Specialty Producers Association, Illinois Meat Processors Association, FFA, 4-H and Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences.
The ability to buy a variety of local foods, from new products to protein, led the state to apply for the federal program, according to Jones.
“We’re making this a priority to make sure certain ethnic foods are provided to underserved communities,” Jones said. According to surveys conducted through the Illinois Institute of Public Health, those foods come with lean proteins, such as lamb, Latin American foods and southern foods.
Jones clarified that the state uses the existing federal definition of “socially disadvantaged farmers, which is very broad. “Members of the plan-making committee will explain how the definition applies to Illinois farmers, he said.
Once extension experts have created an implementation plan based on data accumulated in listening sessions, the state will consider a formal request for clustering sites where farmers’ produce will be equitably collected, packaged, and distributed to underserved committees. Jones noted that the aggregation sites will be located around the state.
A large percentage of the $14. 4 million will be used to buy produce directly from farmers, while some of the money will go toward operating the aggregation site, according to Jones. The extension will be paid for their paintings with the assignment and for offering technical assistance to meeting site operators and farmers.
Jones estimated that regional listening sessions will take place in the winter and spring with an implementation plan later in 2023. It has planned for the aggregation sites in the allocation to operate from October 2023 to December 2024. The 2024 development season would get the most impact, he noted.