U.S. announces $2.1B to shore up food supply chain
WASHINGTON — The Agriculture Department announced more than $2.1 billion in funding Wednesday to shore up a food supply chain disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic and Russia’s war in Ukraine.
The investments seek to address those issues, encouraging competition in food processing and market access and aiming to shift the way Americans produce, buy and consume food.
“A transformed food system is part of how we as a country become more resilient and competitive in the face of these big future challenges and threats,” the agriculture secretary, Tom Vilsack, said in a speech at Georgetown University detailing the funding.
The pandemic created bottlenecks in meat processing, as plants were shut down after outbreaks of the virus, while disruptions in global shipping and transportation caused backlogs in agricultural trade.
Russia’s war in Ukraine contributed to increasing costs in oil, fertilizer and wheat. As a result, food prices have skyrocketed in recent months.
The funding is from the $1.9 trillion stimulus package President Joe Biden signed into law in 2021. The department will provide $375 million for organic and urban agriculture, $900 million to expand food-processing capacity, $550 million for local food distribution programs and food waste reduction, and $370 million to expand access to healthy food.
Mr. Vilsack said the $2.1 billion alone would not be enough to create lasting change in the food system. Congress, he said, should build upon the investments in the 2023 farm bill, which sets agriculture and food policy and is typically renewed every five years.