Small farms, great impacts 🧑‍🌾🇺🇲

💰 Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced this week at the National Farmers Union convention, held in San Francisco, that the USDA is investing another $89 million in grants under the Meat and Poultry Intermediary Lending Program (MPILP) to increase available financing and thus, support independent processors, alleviate bottlenecks, and create opportunities for small businesses and entrepreneurs in rural communities across the nation. 

     • The funding is part of an action plan to achieve a fairer, more competitive, and more resilient meat and poultry supply chain to ultimately bring down food costs for families at the grocery store – after all, the beneficiaries may be small farms, but they have great impact.

     • Additionally, nonprofit lenders in seven states will use the funding to establish revolving loan funds, and Vilsack says more announcements are underway to continue supporting the supply chain. Read more about the grants here.