Communities to benefit from state grants to combat food insecurity
Kim Ring
Area communities including Leominster, Southbridge, Leicester, Berlin and Lancaster are sharing some of the more than $4.7 million in state grants to address urgent food insecurity for residents across Massachusetts as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Baker-Polito administration on Tuesday announced the funding, which is being awarded as part of the fifth round of the new $36 million Food Security Infrastructure Grant Program, created following recommendations from the administration's COVID-19 Command Center's Food Security Task Force.
"As Massachusetts residents celebrate Thanksgiving this week, we recognize that food insecurity remains a significant challenge for many families throughout the commonwealth, making our efforts to secure a resilient, diverse local food supply chain even more critical," Gov. Charlie Baker said. "Through a $56 million investment through our Food Security Task Force, our administration is committed to investing in our local food infrastructure and ensuring a secure supply of food, which will enable us to ensure that families throughout Massachusetts can access local, nutritious food as they continue to meet the challenges created by the pandemic."
"The investments made through this program will help Massachusetts' farmers and food producers build on the progress our state has made since the onset of the pandemic to ensure a strong local food chain," Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito said.
The goal of the Food Security Infrastructure Grant Program is to ensure that individuals and families throughout the commonwealth have equitable access to food, especially local food. The program also seeks to ensure that farmers, fishermen and other local food producers are better connected to a strong, resilient food system to help mitigate future food supply and distribution disruption.
The administration also announced the COVID-19 Command Center's new food program for isolating and quarantining individuals in collaboration with local boards of health and the Community Tracing Collaborative, which invests nearly $1.2 million to support residents in isolation.
Eligible grantees include entities that are part of the Massachusetts local food system including production, processing and distribution, the emergency food distribution network, Buy Local, community and food organizations, school meal programming, urban farms and community gardens, nonprofits, and organizations that provide business planning, technical assistance and information technology services. The Request for Responses for project proposals closed on Sept 15.
Southbridge Public Schools Federal Lunch Program was awarded $116,000 to purchase equipment to establish an on-site farm that will grow and harvest greens for salads. The farm will increase the production and consumption of Massachusetts-grown food and will ensure food safety as the lettuce is grown free of herbicides and pesticides, and will help reduce hunger and food insecurity.
Also in Southbridge, the First United Methodist Church will receive $800 for a freezer unit to aid in its distribution of food for those in need.
Growing Places Garden Project, Inc. in Leominster will receive $66,100 to expand the availability of its products to low-income individuals and families by investing in equipment that enables SNAP payments. The funds will also be used for kitchen infrastructure, such as refrigeration storage, to allow better distribution of food to underserved individuals and families within the community.
The Little Bit Farm & Apiary in Leicester will receive $7,714 for a greenhouse heater to extend the growing season as well as a new refrigerator to increase the shelf life of perishable items.
Holiday Farm in Berlin will receive $1,020 for refrigeration at its farm stand to increase the amount of produce available and its longevity.
World Farmers in Lancaster will receive a grant for $5,397 for equipment that enables SNAP/EBT payments to be directly made. The funds will also facilitate the growth and development of small-scale vegetable farms owned and operated by immigrant and refugee farmers through the Flats Mentor Farm program.