Shapiro Administration Invests $4 Million to Grow Ag Industry, Expand Fresh, Affordable Food Access Across Pennsylvania

Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding today announced the relaunch of the Fresh Food Financing Initiative (FFFI) that will invest $4 million in businesses working to expand access to fresh food across Pennsylvania. At Erie Food Co-op, Redding toured upgrades, funded by an FFFI grant during the COVID-19 pandemic, that are helping the business to connect the community with fresh, more affordable local food.

Governor Josh Shapiro devoted $2 million per year in each of his first two bipartisan state budgets to revive the initiative previously been funded with federal Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) dollars. Legislation giving the PA Department of Agriculture authority to spend the money followed in 2024.

“Pennsylvania farmers are at the top of their game at producing fresh, healthy food, Secretary Redding said. “But too many families struggle to find – or afford -- fresh food in their communities, and their health suffers. Fresh Food Financing grants help grocery stores and markets in those communities expand to meet that need. The initiative is one more way the Shapiro Administration is investing in opportunities for Pennsylvania farms, food businesses, and families to succeed.”

According to Feeding America’s annual Map the Meal Gap report, in 2022, more than one in nine Pennsylvanians didn’t always know where their next meal was coming from. That includes 436,000 children facing hunger. Hunger is not an issue of food scarcity, many of those children and families live in communities where there is nowhere nearby to buy fresh, affordable, healthy food.  

"We are a small community-owned food Co-op in an area that has seen rapid divestment from large corporate grocery stores,” said Erie Food Co-op CEO LeAnna Nieratko. “Funding from the FFFI has allowed us to upgrade our aging equipment to bring needed technological advancements that otherwise may have been cost prohibitive. These advancements allow us to be competitive with larger chains and help us keep costs down as we are often the closest, most accessible source of fresh food in our neighborhood."

Fresh Food Financing Initiative grants will open for application on November 2, with applications accepted through 5 p.m. on January 18. Details will be published at agriculture.pa.gov and in the Pennsylvania Bulletin.

Grocery stores, neighborhood markets, bodegas, mobile markets, farm markets and other businesses that provide fresh food directly to consumers will be eligible for the grants. Businesses located in food deserts — areas designated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture  as having limited access to fresh food — will be given priority consideration, as well as women-, minority-, and veteran-owned businesses.

The initiative complements other Shapiro Administration investments to increase access to healthy food for vulnerable Pennsylvanians, including:

• ·$46.5 million to provide universal free breakfast to all of Pennsylvania’s 1.7 million public school students and free lunch to all 22,000 Pennsylvania students who are eligible for reduced-price lunches through the National School Lunch Program.
•  $2 million increase to the State Food Purchase Program to provide state funds for emergency food assistance for low-income Pennsylvanians, connect surplus food donated by farmers through the Pennsylvania Agricultural Surplus System food banks and food pantries statewide, and connect low-income seniors to Senior Food Boxes with nutritious dietary staples.
• Convening and staffing the Pennsylvania Food Policy Council to examine the complex issues contributing to food insecurity and food waste, and implement strategies to improve nutrition and support healthy, equitable food systems for all Pennsylvanians

Governor Josh Shapiro’s bipartisan 2024-25 budget continues to invest in Pennsylvania’s national legacy as a leader in agriculture. The Governor’s new Economic Development Strategy recognizes agriculture as key to Pennsylvania’s future economic success