U.S. Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced the creation of new programs that will help farmers who grow fruits, vegetables, and nuts overcome market barriers for their products, and help producers access necessary pre-market storage for their crops following severe weather events, including recent hurricanes. Specifically, the new Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops initiative will provide $2 billion to assist specialty crop growers in maintaining a strong domestic supply and expanding market opportunities for their crops.
USDA is also creating the Commodity Storage Assistance Program, which will provide $140 million to help producers gain access to a packinghouse, grain elevator, or other facility necessary for the marketing of agricultural commodities. This program is designed for farmers nationwide due to disaster-related challenges, and USDA anticipates high signup rates in the Southeast due to the devastation caused by hurricanes Debbie, Helene, and Milton.
These programs would complement the disaster assistance package the Biden-Harris Administration has proposed to Congress, which included a request for resources for USDA’s Emergency Relief Program (ERP) and Emergency Livestock Relief Program (ELRP), in addition to nutrition assistance, and rural infrastructure support. The ERP and ELRP provide support for disaster losses for row crop, specialty crop, and livestock producers.
Final details, including eligibility and payment rates, will be set forth in a Notice of Funding Availability for each program.
Marketing Assistance Program for Specialty Crops
The Marketing Assistance Program for Specialty Crops will expand markets by helping specialty growers who typically have higher marketing costs related to the tenderness and perishability of fruits, vegetables, floriculture, nursery crops, and herbs; specialized handling and transport equipment with temperature and humidity control; packaging; moving perishables to market quickly; and higher labor costs. USDA anticipates applications will open in December 2024.
This initiative builds on previous investments by USDA under the Biden-Harris Administration in support of the U.S. specialty crop industry.
For additional information on the announcement and allocation of the $2 billion investment into specialty crops, please read the full USDA press release.
