INDIANAPOLIS — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) recently announced it has partnered with the Indiana State Department of Agriculture (ISDA) to award over $6.7 million for 17 projects through the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program (RFSI). These grants will build resilience across the middle of the supply chain while strengthening local and regional food systems.
Local projects that were awarded funding include:
• Shop Kid LLC, (Marion County) will use the funds to construct a new co-packing facility dedicated to the processing of local fruits, grains, and vegetables for the manufacturing of value-added products. This project will create several dozen new jobs in multiple locations throughout the Marion County region.
• Soul Food Project (SFP) , (Marion County) will use the funds to expand its food distribution capacity in Indianapolis by acquiring cold storage and a refrigerated van. Operating four farm sites, SFP intends to bolster production capacity and streamline the distribution of fresh, locally grown produce for itself and five partner farms to local food pantries and local grocery stores.
• Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana, (Marion County) will expand its transportation fleet by acquiring a refrigerated tractor/trailer. This addition will increase the amount of food sourced from local and regional growers for Gleaners’ network partners throughout a 21-county service area, prioritizing local fresh fruits and vegetables. By adding another unit to its fleet, Gleaners can incrementally increase the number of fresh fruits, vegetables, and eggs it is able to source and distribute from local agriculture to its service area from local Indiana farmers.