The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service awarded over $1.3 million in Fiscal Year 2023 Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) funding to Wisconsin. With this grant, the Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade, and Consumer Protection (DATCP) will fund projects that enhance the competitiveness of specialty crop products. The grant will also create new market opportunities for the state’s specialty crop producers.
“With this year’s Specialty Crop Block Grant funding, Wisconsin is investing in innovative projects that will help address the needs of specialty crop producers within the region,” said USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt. “The funded projects will also further USDA’s efforts to ensure U.S. specialty crop products remain competitive in markets across the nation and abroad.”
Through the SCBGP, the Wisconsin DATCP will fund 13 projects. Among the department’s projects, is funding for a marketing campaign to increase the knowledge, consumption, and sales of apples. Additional funded projects focus in areas such as pest management, evaluation of heirloom collards varieties, and the development of recommendations on how to improve the quality of pollen collected by honeybees.
More information about these awards is available on this webpage: 2023 SCBGP Awarded Grants (pdf).
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