LFPA Executive Summary – Florida

The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Division of Food, Nutrition and Wellness (FDACS) is proposing to administer $14,880,000 through a non-competitive cooperative agreement for the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service’s (AMS) Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA). The purpose of the award is to maintain and improve Florida’s food and agricultural supply chain resiliency. FDACS will create a program that will foster in-state, long-term relationships and build sustainable market opportunities for State producers, with an emphasis on supporting small and socially disadvantaged producers to increase the amount of product distributed to underserved populations in the state and underserved communities that are not part of the normal food distribution network. The goal is to tailor food distribution for unique local challenges to serve the population and feeding programs, including food banks, and other organizations that target underserved communities. As an example, encouraging the creation of new markets for grade B products. The State will administer the LFPA program funds through a competitive grant program allowing food banks, nonprofits, and other social service organizations to apply for a portion of the Florida LFPA funds. Program staff will engage with subrecipients to foster sustainable new markets for purchasing state products, especially from socially disadvantaged producers for underserved populations.