DUFFIELD – The Duffield Food Hub will continue food box distributions, but the farm network supplying much of the operation has lost its federal funding.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Trump administration in April had frozen an approximately $1.5 million Agricultural Marketing Services grant for the Food Hub, which packs and distributes approximately 2,000 food boxes weekly for low-income residents.
Appalachian Sustainable Development’s Development Director Sylvia Crum said Thursday that the AMS grant, which restarted in May, will continue through 2026. That grant reimburses ASD
Getting food from farmers to fill those boxes became harder Tuesday, Crum said, after USDA finalized a $42.5 million cut to the five-year Appalachian Regional Food Business Center program.
The program helped ASD and 18 other organizations in seven central Appalachian states – Virginia, Tennessee, Kentucky, West Virginia, Ohio, Maryland and Pennsylvania – provide technical assistance to small-to-medium sized farm operations. That assistance included helping farmers adapt their operations to supply markets for agricultural and other products, Crum said.
“With this grant, ASD and our partners had plans to help distribute more than $16 million directly to small-to-medium scale farmers, producers, and food businesses in Central Appalachia,” said ASD CEO Kathlyn Terry Baker. “It’s vital for farmers to have resources to expand operations and ensure their success.”
“Right now, we’re sourcing from approximately 40 farmers,” said Crum. “We don’t know how that’s going to affect them yet.”
USDA notification of the cut came July 15, Crum said, and ASD and other grant awardees have to wind down their operations by Sept. 15.
With the summer growing and harvest season at hand, Drum said ASD is able to source foods from a 100-150-mile radius. As fall and winter approach, ASD has to double that radius to find farm suppliers to spend funds within central Appalachia, she added.
“That means increased costs for transportation and food handling,” said Crum.
Paul Harbin, ASD’s Regional Food Business Center Manager, said Thursday USDA is allowing AFRBC awardees to reapply for a downsized program of approximately $4 million in direct grants to farmers.
Under the original ARFBC grant, Baker said, 179 farmers applied for technical assistance funds to help with business planning, specialized equipment and product development — with the grant given to 50 people.
“We all know farmers are the backbone of America,” said Baker, “and we’re hopeful that the termination of this grant will be followed by new grant resources that will continue to provide economic opportunities for all.”
ASD was able to make arrangements with private foundations to continue the food hub and associated workforce development program, Crum said. The food hub employes 12 people for packing boxes and handling box distribution to community agencies, churches and other organizations in the region.
Crum credited the Richard and Leslie Gilliam Foundation for working with ASD on a $500,000 grant for regional food access work. That grant and supplemental grants from the Rapha Foundation and First Bank and Trust should allow the Duffield Food Hub to continue through 2025.
“We’re also submitting applications to other foundations and organizations too,” Crum said.
The Duffield Food Hub opens Fridays at 10 a.m. for individual food box distributions on a first-come, first-served basis.