A launch pad for farms: Leveraging USDA programs across our regions

Two USDA programs provide a foundation for our Forward Commitment work

Some of The Common Market’s most significant growth in 2023 stemmed from the USDA’s Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA) and Local Foods for Schools (LFS), two programs that jump-started deeper engagement with our farmer partners new and old. Although the characteristics of the programs varied across our states, they allowed The Common Market to diversify how locally grown food could reach people who need it. The programs also created new and stable economic opportunities for our farmers, spanning multiple growing seasons and providing up to 30 months of guaranteed procurement revenue. This multi-season, yet finite, funding opened doors for many of our supply chain partners, including historically underserved growers that had limited experience working at wholesale scale.

Our producers engaged in our Farm Impact Assessment, a second-party verification of production practices that mirrors the pillars of the Good Food Purchasing Program (local and community, environmental sustainability, animal welfare, and nutritious and clean). The goal of this evaluation is to collect baseline data on our supply chain and identify opportunities for improvement as well as infrastructure needs. The information allows us to confidently prepare producers for institutional sales and market products based on their attributes.

We can then make purchasing commitments to growers and issue purchase orders based on our capacity conversations and TA investments. Based on the value of their purchase orders, we can offer zero-interest loans to the growers for up to 50% of the cumulative purchase order value. We consider loans for capital improvements with the same terms.

Both programs were inspired by the need to support our country’s hardworking farms and create resilient supply chains. But, what happens once the various program periods end? How do we preserve the recent increase in capacity and investments made by our farmer partners?

Our forward commitment program (agreements made in advance with institutions, like universities and hospitals, to purchase products from values-aligned growers over an extended period, often a growing season or calendar year) is the ideal next step – ensuring farmers do not lose substantial market demand they just worked so hard to meet.

​Why would institutions want to make forward commitments?

1. Advanced and localized planning helps to sustain a resilient and dependable supply chain. This provides reassurance to institutions that the food they need is not only grown especially for them but is also grown nearby. These arrangements act as a solution to the supply chain disruptions faced by many schools, hospitals, and other institutions during the COVID-19 pandemic. If weather or equipment failure lead to a product shortage, our ability to substitute for similar products grown by a producer in a neighboring town or state becomes a reliable safety net.

2. The commitments go beyond menu planning and invoices. They can foster community building, connecting a community of consumers and chefs to the source of their food in novel ways. Our early adopters have had the opportunity to visit our farms in person, where they have met and interacted with the farmers who are responsible for growing the ingredients that will be used in student cafeterias the following season. This program helps our educational institutions establish close relationships with their food sources.

3. Forward commitments to our grower network, especially those representing BIPOC leadership and/or advanced climate-smart practices, are a strategic avenue for institutions to align with their Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) goals. Institutions can promote diversity and equity in their procurement practices by supporting environmentally f riendly farming methods that champion fair labor practices, and ethical animal treatment. These principles are often consistent with ESG principles. By committing to these practices, institutions can not only enhance their reputation for responsible practices but also contribute to building a sustainable and interconnected food system. This has a positive impact on both the local community and broader societal well-being.