The U.S. Department of Agriculture will conduct a referendum Sept. 1 through Oct. 3, 2022, for South Texas onion producers to vote on whether to continue their federal marketing order. Producers who produced onions within South Texas during the period of Aug. 1, 2020, through July 31, 2021, are eligible to vote. Notice of the referendum was published in the Federal Register on July 8, 2022.

Northeast Region

• Connecticut – Monica Pacheco, monica.pacheco@ct.gov

Mid-Atlantic Region

• New Jersey - Nicole Broadwater - nicole.broadwater@ag.nj.gov
• Pennsylvania – Caryn Long Earl, cearl@pa.gov
• Virginia – Bee Thorp, Brittany.thorp@doe.virginia.g

The Oklahoma Local Farmers Programs for Underserved Populations will provide outreach and target socially disadvantaged farmers and producers to provide local foods to underserved communities. The goal is to identify socially disadvantaged farmers and producers and provide an opportunity for them to distribute food products to local communities and therefore expand economic development, not only for the producer, but for the communities they serve.

The purpose of the Washington State Local Food Purchase Assistance Pilot Program is to strengthen local food supply chains by facilitating and funding the purchase of Washington-grown and processed food for distribution to people in rural, remote, and underserved communities. Through this pilot program, over $3M will be spent purchasing food directly from local and regional farmers and producers, with 63% of resources prioritized for procurement from socially disadvantaged producers.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced the National Sheep Industry Improvement Center Board of Directors (NSIIC) is accepting grant proposals for the Sheep Production and Marketing Grant Program (SPMGP). The SPMGP was established by Congress to foster improvements in the U.S. sheep industry and will be accepting proposals through Sept. 15, 2022.