United Fresh joins non-profits in urging more produce purchases for feeding programs – Produce Blue Book - Produce Blue Book

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The United Fresh Produce Association BB #:145458 joined a group of non-profit organizations and schools to send a letter to Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack regarding implementation of USDA’s recent $1 billion announcement around emergency feeding.

The letter seeks a USDA plan that prioritizes access to a wide variety of fresh fruits and vegetables in purchasing and is more inclusive of the nonprofits and schools that have fed the needy during the pandemic.

The letter is as follows:

During this extraordinary time, we thank you for your leadership and support your vision to build a more resilient emergency food system that prioritizes nutrition security, equity, and supports diverse and resilient supply chains.

Your recent announcements offer an opportunity to move USDA nutrition and farm programs in a unified direction. Our collective experiences over the last 15 months may provide tangible examples of how you could approach the immediate task of investing $1 billion to procure and provide nutritious food to families, including prioritizing access to fresh fruits and vegetables from a diverse group of producers, using reputable nonprofit organizations to reach underserved and hard to reach populations that complement the existing emergency food network.

Expand Access and Distribution Opportunities
The utilization of both traditional food banks and partnerships in the TEFAP network and organizations that are not typically recipients of TEFAP foods, play an integral role in reaching our most vulnerable, particularly those in deeply rural communities and with specific dietary needs and preferences.

Appreciating that USDA needs to ensure distribution is conducted by organizations that are targeting those most in need and have food safety protocols in place, USDA should ensure that fresh produce distribution is available to all entities already participating in USDA feeding programs (TEFAP agencies and food banks, schools, CACFP sites, summer meals, etc.) and create a streamlined vetting process for new nonprofits and entities wishing to participate, many of which have longstanding and trusting relationships with the communities they serve.

Align USDA Procurement Protocols with the Administration’s Values
Experience shows us that when USDA procurement is driven by lowest price, the result is lower quality for recipients and lost opportunities for producers and the supply chain that undercuts long-term resilience and development potential. USDA’s procurement dollars can support and enhance the excellent work done by USDA’s Agricultural Marking Service and Rural Development that aims to ensure fair prices to producers and workers, as well as the Food and Nutrition Service and Center for Nutrition Policy Promotion’s goals to help our population meet Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) recommendations. This would help ensure a higher volume and more diversity of producers, encourage regenerative production methods, build economic opportunities in rural and communities that have been historically underserved, and help improve dietary quality.

Improve Access and Support Dietary Quality
The last year has brutally brought home to us all the human cost of poor nutrition. We know that food is medicine and we wholeheartedly endorse your commitment to nutrition security and increasing USDA’s purchases of specialty crops. The DGA recommends that we make half our plates fruits and vegetables, yet only 10% of Americans meet DGA recommendations for fruits and vegetables – with percentages even lower for those who are food insecure. Unfortunately, of the $1.85 billion USDA Foods purchased in FY 2020, only 0.3% was fresh-to-the-consumer fruits and vegetables. We know that demand exists for these nutritious foods, as reports consistently say that fresh produce is the most sought after food in emergency feeding. Right-sizing USDA purchases to promote access to fresh fruits and vegetables must be a goal of emergency feeding.

We recognize the pressure USDA staff and leadership are under to roll out programs expeditiously and with program integrity. Our members are on the front lines, either growing and distributing healthy foods or providing food to families in diverse communities across the country. We are ready to help in any way we can and look forward to forging a partnership that achieves the potential we all strive to
achieve.

Respectfully,
Boys & Girls Clubs of America
CAP/OC/Orange County Food Bank
Citygate Network
Communities Unlimited
Des Moines Area Religious Council/DMARC
Houston Independent School District
Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future-
Bloomberg School of Public Health
Laredo Independent School District
Monterey Peninsula Unified School District
National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC)
Network of Jewish Human Service Agencies
North Bergen School District
Nourish Colorado
San Diego Unified School District
San Luis Coastal Unified School District
United Fresh Produce Association
Wallace Center at Winrock International
West New York School District
Wholesome Wave
Wood-Ridge School District
YMCA of the USA
The Common Market

The Link Lonk


June 28, 2021 at 08:45PM
https://www.producebluebook.com/2021/06/28/united-fresh-joins-non-profits-in-urging-more-produce-purchases-for-feeding-programs/

United Fresh joins non-profits in urging more produce purchases for feeding programs – Produce Blue Book - Produce Blue Book

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