NPC ISSUES STATEMENT ON USDA’S ECONOMIC RELIEF PLAN FOR SPECIALTY CROPS

National Potato Council (NPC) welcomes the United States Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack’s announcement of a new Marketing Assistance for Specialty Crops Initiative providing $2 billion in assistance to specialty crop growers to maintain a strong domestic supply and to expand market opportunities for their crops. In addition, NPC welcomed the allocation of $72.9 million in Specialty Crop Block Grant Program funding for innovative projects aimed to increase productivity with the specialty crop sector. In the 2023 fiscal year, exports of specialty crops totaled $24.6 billion equating to 13.8% of total U.S. agricultural exports.

This USDA announcement recognizes the ongoing pressures and offers the opportunity for economic relief to impacted family farms. In making these farms eligible, USDA’s action also acknowledges the importance of the potato industry to the U.S. economy, including the more than 700,000 domestic workers supported throughout the potato supply chain. The relief offered today also highlights the need for the certainty offered by a fully reauthorized five-year Farm Bill, providing long term investments in research, trade, pest and disease exclusion, crop insurance and other vital programs. More details of the program will be released soon, and it is anticipated the relief plan will follow the CFAP2 program.

View USDA Press Release Here.