USDA awards grants to specialty crop farmers

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) awarded more than $113 million in program grants for farmers who grow fruits, vegetables, tree nuts and nursery crops on Oct. 5.

The grants, part of an initiative to support President Barack Obama's commitment to strengthening local and regional food systems, are administered by USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) and USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).

"Increasing market opportunities for local food producers is a sound investment in America's rural economies while also increasing access to healthy food for our nation's families," Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said.

In 2015,NIFA made 15 new awards totaling more than $40 million. Among those receiving grants for fiscal year 2015 are University of California, Davis; University of Florida, Gainesville; Michigan State University, East Lansing; Cornell University, Ithaca, New York; North Carolina State University, Raleigh; Ohio State University, Columbus; Agriculture & Environmental Geographic Information Systems, Great Falls, Virginia; Washington State University, Pullman; University of Wisconsin, Madison; USDA Agricultural Research Service, Wooster, Ohio: and USDA Agricultural Research Service, Houston, Texas.