The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service has partnered with the South Carolina Department of Agriculture to award $4.1 million for 26 projects through the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) Program. The 26 projects consist of four infrastructure projects and 22 equipment projects to build resilience along the middle of the supply chain while strengthening local and regional food systems.

“We‘ve learned that the American food supply chain is strongest when it’s diversified, and when local farmers and other business owners have some ‘skin in the game,’” said South Carolina Commissioner of Agriculture Hugh Weathers. “These RFSI grants will empower South Carolina agribusinesses to help each other serve new markets, scale up their operations, and create an adaptable food system.”

The grants will support expanded capacity for the aggregation, processing, manufacturing, storing, transporting, wholesaling, and distribution of locally and regionally produced food products, including specialty crops, dairy, grains and other row crops for human consumption, aquaculture, and other food products, excluding meat and poultry, and wild-caught seafood.

Projects include:

• The Catawba Farm and Food Coalition will support ongoing efforts in rural areas of the Upstate and Piedmont regions of South Carolina through expansion of cold storage facilities and delivery vehicles to aid in the processing, aggregation, and distribution of local products and value-added items through producer partnerships.
• RobinHood Group will establish a commercial kitchen in Union, South Carolina, to address the lack of adequate kitchen facilities and equipment for processing local food and creation of value-added products, allowing producers to diversify and gain new market opportunities.
• Ridgeville Okra Company in Dorchester County will partner with local producers to increase product distribution into new markets across the state with a refrigerated delivery vehicle, ensuring efficiency and freshness along the supply chain.
• Old Tyme Bean Co. will address supply chain issues with storage and processing capacity through processing equipment and cold storage, ultimately helping local Midlands farmers get their crop to market through efficient and sustainable processing operations.

Source - https://agriculture.sc.gov