Specialty crop growers to get $2 billion boost from USDA
U.S. specialty crop growers will receive help in overcoming recent challenges through a new federal program aimed at maintaining a strong domestic supply and expanding market opportunities.
The $2 billion Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops initiative will help farmers who grow fruits, vegetables and nuts and typically face higher marketing costs related to perishability, transport, packaging and labor, according to a news release from the USDA.
The agency is also creating the Commodity Storage Assistance Program, which will provide $140 million to help producers access necessary pre-market storage for their crops following severe weather events. USDA expects high response rates to the program in the Southeast, hard-hit by hurricanes Debby, Helene and Milton.
Producers will have to show that natural disasters caused a loss in commercial storage or marketing.
“From providing high-quality, nutritious, American-grown fruits, vegetables and nuts to our nation and the world, to serving as economic pillars of their communities, specialty crop producers play a critical role in the success of U.S. agriculture,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in the release. “The Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops and Commodity Storage Assistance programs will be important for producers in every corner of the United States, but they come at an especially critical time for Southeastern farmers, who will face a difficult and long recovery after this season’s devastating hurricanes.”
USDA anticipates applications for both programs will open in December.
Final details, including eligibility and payment rates, will be set forth in a Notice of Funding Availability for each program.
Industry response
The National Potato Council welcomed the Nov. 19 announcement of the programs.
“The U.S. specialty crop sector, including potatoes, has faced a series of unforeseen challenges over the last four years,” NPC president and Colorado potato grower Bob Mattive said in a statement. “Today’s USDA announcement recognizes these ongoing pressures and offers the opportunity for economic relief to impacted family farms. In making these farms eligible, USDA’s action also acknowledges the importance of the potato industry to the U.S. economy, including the more than 700,000 domestic workers supported throughout the potato supply chain.”
NPC also said the relief highlights the need for a fully reauthorized five-year Farm Bill, which would provide “long term investments in research, trade, pest and disease exclusion, crop insurance and other vital programs.”
The Specialty Crop Farm Bill Alliance (SCFBA) echoed NPC’s sentiments, applauding the programs while also urging the passage of a five-year farm bill.
“The last four years have been turbulent for the specialty crop industry due to skyrocketing costs of production inputs, especially labor, as well as competition from imports with lower input costs,” SCFBA said in a statement.
“This week’s USDA announcement is in direct response to these challenges that have roiled producers and is a step in the right direction. This vital assistance will help growers recover from some of this economic battering, and we are encouraged to see USDA recognizing the unique needs of the specialty crop industry and its role in American agriculture.”
History of help
The new 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.
In January 2024, as part of its new Regional Agricultural Promotion Program (RAPP), a foreign market development and food security initiative announced in October 2023, USDA launched the Assisting Specialty Crop Exports (ASCE) initiative, which is providing $65 million for projects that will help the specialty crop sector increase global exports and expand to new markets. USDA awarded the first $25 million through this initiative in October.
Additionally in August 2023, USDA announced $72.9 million in grant funding available to support the specialty crops industry through the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP), which will fund innovative projects designed to bolster the competitiveness of the expanding specialty crop sector.
