Boston and Berkshire County — The Healey-Driscoll administration announced on Wednesday, October 20, that they have awarded $24.6 million in grants to 163 Massachusetts food-system enterprises.
The goal of the grants, as announced in a press release, is to help to sustain Massachusetts’ food-production and distribution sectors, while at the same time working to ensure that fresh, healthy, local food is available to all residents.
The funding is being distributed through the innovative Food Security Infrastructure Grant (FSIG) program, a competitive grant program managed by the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) and designed to ensure farmers and other local food producers are better connected to a strong and resilient food system.
“The food system represents so much of what makes Massachusetts great,” said Gov. Maura Healey in the press release. “From our national leadership in cranberries and fisheries, to our dairy and maple producers, to our farm-to-school and urban agriculture efforts, we are committed to building the state’s food security through these grants.”
Launched in 2020 as a recommendation of the Massachusetts Food Security Task Force, the FSIG program provides grants for capital infrastructure investments that increase access to locally produced food for families and individuals throughout the state who may be facing food insecurity, live in gateway cities or food deserts, or otherwise face unequal access to food. The program seeks to ensure that farmers, fishers, and other local food producers are better connected to a strong, resilient food system to help mitigate future supply chain issues.
Berkshire County awardees:
- Berkshire Grown, Great Barrington: $102,888;
- Berkshire Resources for Integration of Diverse Groups and Education, Lee: $86,093;
- Farmfields Dairy Farm, LLC, Williamstown: $373,380;
- Full Well Farm, Adams: $78,850;
- Gwozdz/Mizpah Farm, Cheshire: $290,131;
- Ioka Valley Farm, Hancock: $11,724;
- North Adams Public Schools, North Adams: $22,060;
- Roots Rising, Pittsfield: $500,000;
- ServiceNet, Inc., Pittsfield: $193,365;
- Sonrisas, Inc., Cheshire: $487,500;
- Sweet Brook Beef Company, Williamstown: $24,056;
- Taft Farms, Great Barrington: $74,428;
- The Farm New Marlborough, New Marlborough: $29,129;
- Twin Rivers Farm LLC, Ashley Falls: $313,631; and
- Verrill Farm LLC, Concord: $25,000
