The USDA Farmers to Families Food Box Program has been established and implemented in an emergency relief measure to respond to rapid seasonal market disruption brought about by a recent global pandemic. The marketplace is very different today than when this initiative was launched in the middle of last year. Although the current recession is a very long-lasting experience in most parts of the world, it has been particularly harsh on the agricultural industry, with the widespread use of agricultural inputs resulting in higher food prices, a lack of usable inventory, and even the need for increased crop protection measures. The USDA Food Box Program offers relief from these pressures through the provision of emergency food assistance. This assistance can be accessed quickly and specifically tailored to meet the specific needs of local communities.

In the days following the signing: of the WFS contract between the US and the USDA, many USDA field representatives met with representatives from local food banks to discuss how the program could be made more beneficial to farmers. They recognized that their current sources of emergency food had been depleted by disease, weather disasters, and yield disasters. The WFS contract was a step in the right direction toward addressing some of these problems. With the implementation of WFS, more USDA personnel are able to visit farms and ranches across the country, bringing these services to those communities in need.

For every one dollar spent in direct food assistance: up to five hundred dollars are allocated to help provide market assistance, which can be in the form of cash, vouchers, or non-food items such as hygiene products and household cleaning supplies. The USDA delivers these supplies using trucks with labels already attached, eliminating the need for individuals to load boxes onto their own vehicles or hire additional people to do so. By delivering the WFS directly to the households that need them, the USDA ensures that the supply of food will be where it is most needed when it is most needed. Through this arrangement, the WFS reduces food insecurity in vulnerable communities and provides immediate relief to millions of families around the nation.

For this summer’s anticipated outbreak of swine flu: both the USFRS and CFRS were created to coordinate emergency preparedness activities between states and the nation as a whole. Both of these programs have long been known for their effectiveness at meeting emergency food demands in times of disaster. Participating in one program or the other has always been a prudent move for farmers and others in the food marketplace. In October, however, no CFRS or USFRS Farmers must engage in the warehousing or delivery of emergency commodities unless they also participate in the WFS. For the millions of families and individuals who purchase food in bulk to use immediately in their daily lives, this change has created an incredible opportunity for leveraging WFS contracts.

Currently, the USDA sells more: than twenty million WFS boxes annually but is still well short of the goal of selling forty million boxes by the end of the current contract. By partnering with national and local food banks, farmers can meet their production needs, yet remain fully compliant with their current contracts. Participating distributors will be responsible for procuring the boxes from farmers, loading them onto trucks and transporting them to the various food banks and distributors in the country.

With over thirty-five million acres: of farmland dedicated to producing healthy livestock, the US Dairybean Marketing Program is among the largest farm-to-food box program in the world. Many family farmers do not have access to markets for their products, but the CFRS ensures that they do. The USDA also works closely with state agricultural agencies to provide information and assistance for dairy producers in need of additional storage capacity and marketing assistance.

The CFRS is an excellent opportunity for farmers to leverage their current and future sales for a healthy profit.