The Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets (VAAFM) will maintain and improve food and agricultural supply chain resiliency by partnering with organizations to purchase and distribute local food to underserved communities. VAAFM has active projects with five nonprofit partners—Abenaki Helping Abenaki, the Center for an Agricultural Economy, Capstone Community Action, the Vermont Foodbank, and the Intervale Center. We additionally have selected nine organizations through a competitive grant process that have started projects in March 2023. VAAFM will conduct a similar competitive grant process for projects beginning in spring 2024. We have additionally identified a local goat meat operation that may receive project funding pending completion of their state meat inspection.
These partners were identified through extensive outreach and chosen for their relationships with socially disadvantaged producers and their service to underserved communities. Each organization will use Local Food Purchase Assistance funds to expand procurement relationships with local farmers and producers with an emphasis on socially disadvantaged food producers. Food purchased using LFPA funds will be directed to underserved communities throughout the state.
The competitive requests for applications are open to all Vermont farm and food businesses as well as nonprofit organizations and embed the goals of the LFPA program within the application, scoring, and review process. LFPA funds are awarded to successful applicants based on their ability to support socially disadvantaged food producers and underserved communities.
LFPA funds will also be utilized to pilot the use of stipends for marginalized community members to participate in review meetings and feedback sessions, as well as to staff time to oversee the sub-awards.