The COVID-19 pandemic caused disruptions in the U.S. food supply chain and contributed to a national hunger crisis. The first round of purchases totaling $945 million occurred from May 15 through June 30, 2020. USDA is also continuing its plans to purchase $1.4 billion in agricultural products produced by farmers, ranchers and producers suffering from damage due to unjustified trade retaliation by foreign nations through the Food Purchase and Distribution Program. @USDA_AMS. . Secure .gov websites use HTTPS The trade mitigation program has surpassed $1.1 billion in purchases this fiscal year, and more than $2 billion on purchases overall during FY19 and FY20, which were provided to states for distribution to the network of food banks and food pantries that participate in the Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP). There are local foodbanks and charities participating and they can always use help! USDA may extend current contracts or award additional contracts to ensure underserved areas are provided an opportunity to participate in the program. I am proud of this Administrations mission to keep our most vulnerable families fed and support American family farms in the process, said Advisor to the President, Ivanka Trump. (Washington, D.C., September 17, 2020) Following President Donald Trumps approval to include up to an additional $1 billion in the Farmers to Families Food Box Program, U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved up to $1 billion in contracts to support American producers and communities in need through the USDA Farmers to Families Food Box Program. Westside church is in Coffee county. That is like looking for a needle in a haystack! An amendment to the BOA will be issued to clarify the amount of acceptable processed meat products, to include seafood products and to clarify certain labelling requirements. According to Brian Rose, CEO of Flavor 1st Growers and Packers, the vegetable cooperative that hosted the president's visit last week, "This has been a huge help to our family farms, and has allowed them to operate through this pandemic. Earlier this month, the Department announced it had entered into contracts with 50 entities for the third round of food box deliveries, which include contracts to purchase up to $1 billion authorized by President Donald J. Trump. This site is also protected by an SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) certificate thats been signed by the U.S. government. We are located in one of the most impoverished zip codes in the City and would like to get started as soon as possible. The initiative awards contracts to distributors whose operations have been significantly impacted by the closure of many restaurants, schools and other food service entities. The prayer line is always packed, its just an amazing feeling. They took advantage of the Farmers to Families Food Box USDA program developed to aid growers and processors affected by COVID-19. The USDA spent $4 billion on the food box program in 2020 six times its normal emergency food budget. Laura Santa Maria from Fellowship Church: We are grateful to be part of this opportunity to distribute fresh produce to people in need. USDA officials acknowledged that a key lesson learned during the implementation of the Food Box Program was the need to collect and analyze such data but that the department did not have time to do so. Washington, DC, June 4, 2020 - U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Farmers to Families Food Box Program has distributed more than five million food boxes in support of American farmers and families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. It was especially disturbing because at that same time, food banks were overwhelmed by a surge of people who had lost their jobs and needed help getting enough food to eat. The third round of the program wasannouncedJuly 24, 2020, and thePresident announcedon Aug. 24, 2020, that up to an additional $1 billion was being made available for deliveries through Oct. 31, 2020. Doug Groendyke, Harvest Hope food sourcer: When youre feeding tens of thousands of people every week, this new program from the USDA and all the farmers whove contributed to this program, its been paramount to feed the clientsPeople need help, and thats what were here for. Official websites use .gov AMS may elect to extend the period of performance of the contracts, via option periods, dependent upon program success and available remaining funds, up to $3 billion. The .gov means its official. USDA collected large amounts of data and analyzed various data on deliveries to recipient organizationsthat is, total number of food boxes delivered to each state and per million people in each stateand determined that the program met its goal of providing food to those in need. U.S. Rep. Jim Hagedorn, R-Minn.: The people here at the food bank and food shelves are passionate folks looking out for members of our community most in needOur producers are who makes this food possible in order to be distributed to those in need. The American Rescue Plan included $3.6 billion for nutrition assistance programs and, building on the lessons of the Farmers to Families Food Box Program, USDA is developing more efficient and effective approaches. We are calling for a continuation of a 15 percent increase in SNAP for the duration of the economic downturn and additional investments in food resources for our nations food banks. I would like to get a food box in Vancouver, WA area. Of the 6.1 billion meals that we helped provide to communities in 2020, 779 million meals were through the Farmers to Families Food Box program . "Who's getting the food? On April 17, 2020, Secretary Perdue announced the program as part of the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program developed to help farmers, ranchers and consumers in response to the COVID-19 national emergency. We have a sense that it will be renewed for further rounds. once joined, click the magnifying glass to search and type in your state. A lock ( LockA locked padlock ) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. Press Release. The .gov means its official. Is this going ro end in February at round 5 or will there be more help. The fourth round of the program wasannouncedon Oct. 23, 2020, and purchased a total of $463 million worth of food delivered between Nov. 1 through Dec. 31, 2020. Michaela Kopf of Lexington Community Foundation: The boxes have been a hit within the communityThe good thing is how nutritionally diverse the boxes areThey get one box of produce, a box of dairy, sometimes we get milk, and then one box of proteinsAnd it's different every week. I was not home when it was delivered so I couldnt say this to the person delivering. The USDA Farmers to Families Food Box Program began in May of 2020 and ended in May of 2021 having distributed more than 173 million food boxes of fresh produce, milk, dairy, cooked meats and seafood worth over $5 billion to Americans across the country. These boxes will be distributed to every county in America. Distributorsthen packaged these products into family-sized boxes and transported them to food banks, community and faith-based organizations, and other non-profits serving Americans in need. It shows you what states they operate in and phone numbers to contact them. Its encouraging to see the passion with which farmers, distributors and non-profits have gone above and beyond to make this program work in support of the American people. By applying this lesson learned to current and future emergency food assistance programs, USDA would have greater assurance that it can assess program effectiveness even when it must move quickly in implementing a program. May God bless all your efforts! The U.S. Department of Agriculture will purchase an additional $1.5 billion worth of food for nationwide distribution through the Farmers to Families Food Box Program. So many people have been greatly affected by this pandemic and need help feeding their families., Joe Cockrell of Cockrell Banana Co.: The USDA has really helped us because we worked a lot of restaurants and of course we worked schools and they shut completely down so needless to say we were off thousands of dollars a week so this has just been a Godsend to us and our local farmers., Lisa Scales, president and CEO at the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank: We couldnt be more thrilled that the Farmers to Families Food Box Program is creating opportunity and providing stability to our region in so many ways., GoFresh, CA: We have been able to put about 100 people back to work because of this programThe thankful recipients of the boxes and their reactions to the program are truly humbling and make us proud to be a part of it Thank you for the opportunity to participate in it., Great Plains Food Bank, ND: A huge thanks to USDA for pulling this together in a remarkable time frame. The Farmers to Families Food Box program is part of the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program, which was developed in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It's worked out so well," President Trump told a cheering crowd on Aug. 24 in North Carolina. @SESPride: When your school district and community cares about the whole child it shows in the smiles of our families and today was full of lots of happy faces! At a hearing on food boxes in July, Rep. Marcia Fudge, D-Ohio, complained that the USDA couldn't answer basic questions about it. But we will keep trying to shine a light and let people know and keep updating this as we move forward as we learn new information. But Cooper and other food bank managers also said that the money for the program could have been spent more effectively and delivered two or three times more food to people who need it. Where can I find distribution centers in the Northwest Indiana area? hereyoujizz center cindy destroyer. We are now into the third round of deliveries and were working harder than ever to continue to build on the success of the program.. Phil Ciccone, Rotary Club of Towne Lake President: Participating in this project was the ultimate service to others in our community. The additional funding for the program was included in the COVID-19 relief package as part of theConsolidated Appropriations Act passed December 21, 2020. Why isnt there a straightforward list of locations? We know that even with the significant increase in meals across the country, for every meal that the entire Feeding America network provides, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) provides nine. So proud of @turnerspgh Dairy and all the dairy industry and the efforts of @SecretarySonny and the USDA for initiating the Farmers to Families Food Boxes! We recommended collecting data to better assess similar food programs. Contact: USDA PressEmail: press@oc.usda.gov. This is a new, innovative approach to provide critical support to American farmers and families, and USDA moved as expeditiously as federal procurement rules allow to stand up the program and solicit offers, said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue. USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. It's a win-win situation.. Before sharing sensitive information online, make sure youre on a .gov or .mil site by inspecting your browsers address (or location) bar. (Washington, D.C., September 29, 2020) - U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue announced today that more than 100 million food boxes have been distributed in support of American farmers and families affected by the COVID-19 pandemic through the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Farmers to Families Food Box Program. SHAME SHAME SHAME. USDA announced contracts for the third round on Sept. 17, 2020. once joined, click the magnifying glass to search and type in your state. Brian Barks, Food Bank for the Heartland CEO: Its great product. "The president said, 'What's all this food being destroyed? Or pass it on to somebody you know who could use it, a neighbor, a friend or an acquaintance from church for example. A full list of approved suppliers will be posted on the Farmers to Families Food Box Program webpage. Thank you to everyone who helped make the @SESPride Farmers to Families food box event a success! USDA's Food Box Program was a response to pandemic-related disruptions in the food supply chain. The additional funding for the program was included in the COVID-19 relief package as part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act passed December 21, 2020. The fourth round was funded by an additional $500 million made available through supplemental appropriations provided to the Secretary in the CARES Act. And processors affected by COVID-19, WA area this to the Secretary in the City and would to. 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