§2204h Local food production and program evaluation

Summary

The Secretary must collect information about the production and sale of local and regional agricultural food products and about the direct and indirect costs of following regulations for those products. The Secretary must also help federal agencies share data, watch how well programs that support local food systems are working, spot federal rules that make it hard for small producers to reach markets, and check how local food systems improve community food security and help people with limited access to healthy food. At minimum, the Secretary must publish reports on prices and volumes, run surveys and studies on production, handling, distribution, retail sales, and consumer trends, and evaluate existing programs’ effects on jobs and local economies. The evaluation must include participation in the Local Agriculture Market Program (established under section 1627c), how many projects are funded versus applicants, types of recipients, ability to attract private funds and their sources, and any extra resources needed. The Secretary must study how federal rules affect small commercial producers’ jobs, market access (including new and beginning producers), and participation in supplier networks, large distribution systems, and retail outlets. The Secretary must add questions about local products to the Agricultural Resource Management Survey and try to build public–private partnerships to collect balanced national and regional data. A report on progress and remaining needs must be sent to the House Committee on Agriculture and the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry not later than 1 year after February 7, 2014, and every year after that.