The U.S Department of Agriculture (USDA) has put a stop to nearly one billion dollars’ worth of funding for two programs that let local farmers sell produce to schools and food banks in Georgia.
So, where does that leave the Gainesville-based Georgia Mountain Food Bank?
“As an Affiliate in the Feeding America Network, we understand that every new administration makes decisions about funding priorities,” Executive Director Rebecca Thurman said recently. “However, the recent loss of critical CCC (Commodity Credit Corporation) funding has left a significant gap in our ability to serve our food-insecure neighbors. In total, we’ve lost the equivalent of over 1.2 million pounds of food—more than one million meals—due to these funding changes. That’s food that families, seniors, and children in our community were counting on.”
While transitions in government often bring uncertainty, hunger does not wait, Thurmon added.
“We remain committed to working with the Trump administration and our corporate partners to find solutions, ensuring that no one in our community has to go without a meal. We are doing everything we can to ramp up food sourcing, but we hope for a swift resolution so we can continue meeting the urgent needs of the 1 in 8 neighbors who rely on us.”
Specifically, she said: “We lost the equivalent of 1,170,000 Lbs. or 975,000 meals from the loss of the Fiscal Year 2024 Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) Funding, and” Thurmon emphasized, “50,000 Lbs. or 41,667 meals from the loss of the…Small/Med Farm Cap Building Program.”
It’s a wait-and-see situation.
“It is so fluid and complex,” Thurman.
