This story was originally reported by KNBA and is republished here with permission:
The U.S. Department of Agriculture axed a program last week that was supporting farmers and food producers, including those in Alaska.
The department created the Regional Food Business Centers program in 2023 to strengthen local food economies. But on Tuesday, July 15, it abruptly ended that program, which was originally funded with pandemic relief money through the American Rescue Plan Act. USDA officials said in a press release there was no long-term way to finance it.
Robbi Mixon, the executive director of the Alaska Food Policy Council, which was in charge of the program locally, said this decision pulls back over $6 million in investment for Alaska, where the majority of food is imported and many villages are not on the road system.
"This was a chance for real economic investment into our food and farm businesses and fishers," Mixon said. "It was a way to attract more investment as well, in terms of grants and loans and things like that. So it's just really sad to see it all go down like this."
A dozen business centers across the country were part of the program. Each one worked to allocate grants to food producers and farmers and help them with grant writing, marketing and business planning.
The Alaska Food Policy Council was working within one of those centers. Mixon said it was a strategic effort to build coordination and long-term infrastructure across Alaska's food sectors.
"The program was tailored to address specific challenges in Alaska," Mixon said. "So, our huge geography, our huge transportation and logistic costs, and our community size."
The council planned to award grants to over 50 food and farm businesses across Alaska. But as they approached the time to award grants last winter, the Trump administration froze the funding, and they had to pause their grant program.
The Department of Agriculture stated in its release that it will honor existing commitments to farmers and food businesses. But in Alaska, Mixon said, almost none of the businesses had an official contract yet – they were only preparing for that collaboration to begin.
"We were working with an organization that was looking to set up more fresh produce markets in rural Alaska. We were working with an organization that wanted to provide technical assistance for home-based food businesses," Mixon said. "And we did have tribal partners as well."
Still, Mixon said the food council will use its volunteer board and statewide working groups to advocate for investments and build stronger food systems for all Alaskans.
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