Erie Regional Producers Sow Seeds for Future Success During USDA Visits

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With more funding made available by the Biden administration through a Farm Bill extension in November of 2023, the USDA is acknowledging the gaps that pushed the focus of agriculture in this country towards large-scale, industrialized farms and is now making strides to include smaller farming initiatives at the table.

A divided nation and a divided Congress came together in 1862 under Abraham Lincoln to establish the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Seven weeks later, Lincoln signed the Morrill Land Grant Act into law. This act gave states public lands to sell or use for profit with proceeds used to build agricultural and technical colleges.

In the current era of a polarized political landscape, it seems fitting that regional citizens met with the USDA on the Penn State Behrend campus — well-known for its contributions to the agricultural community — to talk about how federal programs are helping and where they're falling short.

On April 23, USDA Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small and Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding held a roundtable discussion with local producers to educate the community on initiatives available through the Biden administration and receive feedback.

With small rural and urban farmers sitting at the table, one thing was clear: federal support needs to include large and small-scale farms and bridge the disconnect between urban and rural operations to create a more sustainable food system that complements the state legislature.

Congress passed a Farm Bill extension in November 2023, which gives Congress an additional 10 months to pass a new Farm Bill for President Joe Biden to sign into law.

Stephanie Ciner, owner of Wild Field Urban Farm, said she has benefited greatly from USDA funds but sees the present moment as an opportunity to foster growth. "I think the USDA is in a unique position now to hopefully become more of a leader," Ciner said during the panel.

The lower east-side urban farmer first fell in love with growing when she lived in Philadelphia, 10 years ago. "Someone gave me a plant and I planted it in the ground — it transformed my life," she said. From there, Ciner participated in a farm apprenticeship to develop the skills and interest needed to sustain her own small farm.

With an urban farm, she has the potential to increase public awareness surrounding how ecosystem changes affect local producers, in addition to the work that goes into growing fresh food. Situated in the city, residents get to see farming practiced firsthand on their daily commutes.

Ciner said USDA funds benefited her journey as a young farmer, but where opportunities fall short is supporting small businesses that farmers like her create.

In the '70s, the USDA became concerned that it may not have enough food supply to meet demand, so it began offering incentives that prioritized efficiency and high-volume production. Torres noted that there are fewer farmers and less farmland, but producers are expected to produce more food than ever. Torres acknowledged that it's challenging for small-scale producers to navigate a system set up for big farms. She touched on some of the supports the USDA hopes to build on.

Those include resources to expand the production of value-added products, such as farming grapes to create wine, jelly, juice, and more; ecosystem services, like support for pollinator upkeep and healthy soil practices that fight climate change and drive productivity, agritourism, local food procurement, and renewable energy investments.

Other conversations centered around providing more technical assistance for farmers so they have sustainable skills to self-advocate and access resources. The Biden Administration has also invested more than $174 million through the Fertilizer Production Expansion Program to support 42 projects nationwide to boost domestic fertilization production in an effort to create fruitful and bountiful pastures for producers.

Those programs support existing resources offered through the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture, such as the state's value-added product research grants.

Recently the USDA Deputy Secretary and Pennsylvania Secretary of Agriculture held a roundtable discussion with local farmers to discuss relevant initiatives by the Biden administration. Pictured (left to right) are Stephanie Ciner of Wildfield Urban Farm, USDA Deputy Secretary Xochitl Torres Small, PA Secretary of Agriculture Russell Redding, and Kristen Weeks of Grow and Glow Collective. (Contributed photo)

Maximizing small producers' profits requires a sustainable and reliable market, which multiple roundtable members identified as an area of improvement. Kristen Weeks, owner of Glow and Grow Urban Collective in Erie, expressed discontent with the USDA's exclusionary nature. She finds it beyond her ability and capacity to meet the rigorous requirements in areas like bookkeeping that the USDA requires its applicants to report.

Torres said the team at USDA is turning a new leaf and wants to cater to all producers, as well as to create a viable and consistent market for those producers to access.

An example of how this is at play on a growing level in Erie County is the Edinboro Market. Marti Martz, Edinboro Market co-founder and executive director, spoke about the expansion Edinboro Market will soon undergo.

The Market has served as a fresh food incubator since 2017 and provides yearlong access to fresh local food that makes it more accessible for low-income and low-access communities while driving business for small rural and urban farmers. Since 2017, the Market has sold over $1.35 million in food and food-related products from 75 small-scale farms and producers within a 100-mile radius surrounding Edinboro. The business follows a 75/25 split model with producers, which means the Market's business has put over a million dollars back into the community.

The Market is now expanding to a vacant building a block away from its current location in downtown Edinboro, and it will include a cafe. The expanded space in the market will augment the retail supply chain capacity. Federal investments in the project will provide over $663,000 and help with building renovations, the purchase of classroom media equipment, and two years of educational programming. This programming will include agricultural training, business development, cooking and gardening, and more.

Redding noted that Edinboro Market could be a convener between those interested in producing food and existing nearby farms and gardens to foster relationships and possibly apprenticeships.

Celeste Makay, advocacy coordinator at Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania, said creating more small farms, local markets, and connections would promote cross-market collaboration. As a result, it could increase efficiency and sustainability in food systems, especially when complemented by measures that make it easier for producers to donate and sell their products. The more of their yield farmers sell helps reduce food waste and maximize economic benefits while cutting down on food insecurity.

As those supports take form, Pennsylvania Certified Organic is behind the scenes to ensure farmers get proper compensation and recognition to help build on their quality products. Pennsylvania Certified Organic is a USDA-accredited organic certifying agency. Diane Kobus, executive director of Pennsylvania Certified Organic, heads regional initiatives. Being certified as organic opens doors to new markets, results in better seller profit, and additional funding and technical assistance. In just over a year, Kobus said the organization has had 154 regional mentees sign up for organic transition as well as 46 organizations providing outreach and technical support, and nine food hubs getting ready to aggregate and distribute fresh organic food.

This transition is meant to be a foundation for economic prosperity and community well-being. "Organic is not grown in wealthy communities. It builds wealth in communities," Kobus remarked.

As inflation increased over the past couple of years, U.S. citizens certainly felt the pinch. Consumers may shy away from spending extra money to get organic products, which is where resources like the Second Harvest Food Bank come into play.

At Second Harvest, Makay said they rely heavily on The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which are USDA programs meant to address food insecurity. Food insecurity is a lack of regular access to safe and nutritious food for a healthy life, whether due to availability or lack of resources to attain that food, like money.

"At Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest Pennsylvania, we've experienced a 79 percent increase in food cost alone since fiscal year 2020, and this came at a time when we've dramatically increased the amount of fresh produce, protein, and dairy products we're providing to northwest Pennsylvania communities," Makay said.

The food bank and its partner hunger-relief organizations saw an overall increase of 33 percent in attendance at food distributions in 2023 compared to 2022.

"At the same time, the cost of purchasing, storing, and distributing food for our food bank and network partners has increased dramatically, straining our limited resources," she said. "Many of the communities we serve are in rural areas where infrastructure, job opportunities, and access to local grocery options are limited. These factors contribute to hunger in rural communities and, for the food bank, even higher costs for storing and transporting food."

For the Food Bank, that means investing in TEFAP, SNAP, and CSFP would benefit the local communities it serves.

The USDA not only needs to provide stronger resources to small-scale producers but also to the markets and organizations that enable the distribution of that food into communities.

As time ticks down for Congress to pass a federal Farm Bill, Redding expressed his confidence in the Biden Administration to sign a Farm Bill with historic agricultural investments, and he said the state will work to leverage and complement that bill.

"I'm excited about what's possible," Redding said. I'm excited about the work … the entire team is doing to change both the perceptions about what we do in agriculture, the power of being in an industry that changes lives, and also that partnership with many people who believe in their community and this state."

dChloe Forbes is a local journalist who feeds her sugar addiction with local honey and can be found at farmers markets next to the nearest freshly-baked zucchini bread. Reach her at chloeforbes14@gmail.com.