Thread by @FoodSolutionsNE

In the Zoom waiting room, waiting for Sec. Vilsack to start the briefing on the newly announced $4B for #FoodSystem #resilience
#USDA #BuildBackBetter

Mae Wu affirming that pandemic has illustrated how vulnerable our #foodsystem is w/room for fairness, equity & resilience to be vastly improved.
#USDA #BuildBackBetter

Wu: describing about how USDA is trying to remedy inequities of the past, increased vax deployment & working on other supply chain challenges. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack up now. Will try to cover the new program in 10 min! “90% of our farms did not generate enough income” to cover the needs of those farm families.” Also talking #soil & #water #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack: acknowledging that food & ag system already needed help pre-pandemic. “What we though was a fairly resilient system, was not resilient at all.” “We learned a lot” about resiliency or lack thereof. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack: Opportunity to convent stakeholders re: resilience of #FoodSystem, #climatechange, #transportation #income. Now making “an investment in a more resilient food system.” #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack: now focusing $ on production, processing, distribution, consumers/markets. A series of investments will be announced over several months, esp #beginningfarmers & marginalized farmers. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack: investment to include support for organic transition, shore up small/med processing capacity, partnerships betweed feds/states, food hubs for local/regional food systems, expand access to healthy foods. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack: “sustainable, circular” and equitable programs from USDA. Enable dairy producers to more easily shift markets. Emergency food programs —> to create opportunities for small/disadvantaged producers. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack: multiple pronged approach with significant investment, many announcements over coming months. indicating a move toward new & #sustainable ways to produce food in this country. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack: now talking about how to better link small producers to federal buyers. making sure USDA resources are more effectively getting to rural, small, disadvantaged producers. also trying to make online application/county offices easier to access. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack: mentioning Farm to Food Bank program, some loan forgiveness for some [producers?], food safety program for sm. producers, specialty crop grant program, etc. encourage joining with other producers via #FoodHubs #USDA #BuildBackBetter

Vilsack: fielding a question about how #BuildBackBetter addresses equity. Mentioning that a #LandAccess program is coming this summer. #USDA

Vilsack: responding to a great @sustainableag question now on meat processing, fed/state interplay on this. Support forthcoming for small/med existing facilities, more access to approved facilitaties, policy changes re: meat crossing state lines, etc. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

@sustainableag Vilsack: acknowledging growing demand for local #sustainable food. “We are seeing alot more of that and we want to be supportive of it.” #USDA #BuildBackBetter

@sustainableag Vilsack: wants markets to be as open & transparent as possible. acknowledges some are not there. “need to look at rules/regs we already have” to ensure openness, transparency and fairness. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

@sustainableag Vilsack on #SupplyChain task force: need to shore up a number of supply chains for national security. USDA & 2 other agencies tapped bc they can make changes on these chains as soon as possible. “Expand & enhance” no. of farmers, ^ diversity, ^processing. #USDA #BuildBackBetter

@sustainableag Vilsack: “This is a major challenge. This is a major opportunity…the only way we can do justice & honor those who have lost their lives to Covid…is to take full advantage of this crisis & convert it into an amazing opportunity.” #USDA #BuildBackBetter

@sustainableag This concludes our tweet notes from the Vilsack briefing. Just reporting some of what we heard, not endorsing. And the proof will be in the pudding, but encouraged by some of the articulated goals. #FoodSystems #FoodJustice #FoodSecurity #LandAccess /fin

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