LORAIN, Ohio — In 2022, the USDA launched the Local Food Purchase Assistance Program, also known as LFPA, but in Ohio, the program goes by Ohio CAN. The federal program has allocated tens of millions of dollars to food banks across the state to purchase food products from local growers for distribution, but the funding for the program is expiring at the end of the year.
Ohio CAN helps smaller operation growers and farmers gain access to distribution chains, such as Ohio food banks. Not only has this program helped connect more Ohioans to fresh, healthy produce, dairy, and meat products, but it’s been a major economic driver in helping smaller growing operations thrive.
“Urban farming should be a thing for the people so they have access to healthy food, good-looking neighborhood quality services, and healthy food from the seed to the plate,” said Alex Barton, the priest at Episcopal Church of the Redeemer.
Tucked in the hearts of multiple Lorain neighborhoods are plots of land owned and grown by Solidarity Farms. Solidarity Farms is a part of the church's mission to empower neighbors to live healthy and fulfilling lives.
“This is my favorite place to be; every day I am learning,” said Jenna Smith, community outreach coordinator at Church of the Redeemer and Solidarity Farms. “It’s a space for reciprocity and growth.”
While community engagement remains Solidarity Farms' top priority, it jumped to join the Ohio CAN program in 2022 following COVID-19. The program not only benefited Solidarity Farms monetarily but opened new avenues for product distribution.
“There is a sort of scramble to think of where to take our excess produce, but also that level of revenue that it gives us enables us to depend on a certain amount of income we use to employ our staff,” Barton added.
Second Harvest Food Bank serves Crawford, Erie, Huron, and Lorain counties. It is one of Solidarity Farm's biggest supporters, helping the farm distribute hundreds of pounds of produce over the last two and a half years. Since Ohio CAN’s conception, $9.8 million worth of food has been purchased from local farmers statewide.
“We are helping people in a vulnerable situation,” said Samantha Flores, director of programming and partner services at Second Harvest Food Bank. “We are helping to create economic stability for growers who are also in a vulnerable state right now due to the nature of farming,”
Ohio will receive $26.5 million in LFPA funding in its roughly three-year period. Executive Director For The Ohio Association Of Food Banks, Joree Novotny, said that despite the program's positive feedback, Ohio CAN funding may not be renewed. This is because funding is not yet permanently authorized in the Farm Bill process passed by Congress every five to six years. Novotny said the 2024 election cycle hasn't made a possible renewal any easier either.
“Here we find ourselves waiting on a Farm Bill and now we know that it's very unlikely that we're going to get a Farm Bill done this calendar year,” Novotny added. “That means that we'll be looking at a new congress with different leadership and kind of starting from square one in a lot of ways.”
Whether Solidarity Farms are harvesting the latest veggies of the season or throwing a community cookout, they’re begging for a new stream of funding to be solidified sooner rather than later.
“It’s kind of like a safety net, almost in ensuring we are able to distribute the food we are growing and not let it go to waste and to be compensated for it adequately,” said Smith. “It would be a shame because it’s been wonderful and has only benefited us and our partners.”
The Ohio Association of Food Banks said once current funding expires at the end of the year, available funds can only support Ohio growers through June 30 2025. Right now, OAF is looking for gap funding.
