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Committee for Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production

WASHINGTON, July 6, 2023 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) encourages urban producers,
innovative producers and other stakeholders to submit comments for and virtually attend a public meeting of
the Federal Advisory Committee for Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production (Committee) on Aug. 1,
2023.

“The Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production Federal Advisory Committee continues to support urban
agriculture and innovative production efforts at USDA with on the ground insight and advice,” said Terry
Cosby, Chief of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), which houses USDA’s Office of
Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production (OUAIP). “I encourage members of the public to attend and
submit comments for the Committee.”

The Committee is part of USDA’s efforts to support urban and innovative agriculture, creating a network for
feedback. Members include agricultural producers and representatives from the areas of higher education or
extension programs, non-profits, business and economic development, supply chains and financing. The
committee last met in April 2023.

About the Meeting

Topics for the upcoming meeting will include addressing public comments and discussing the following
recommended topics:
 Food waste prevention and food recovery
 Surplus food recovery
 Compostable food packing standards

The Committee will deliberate and vote on proposed recommendations and address public comments during the
meeting. USDA will share the agenda between 24 to 48 hours prior to the meeting
on https://www.usda.gov/partnerships/federal-advisory-committee-urban-ag.

The virtual meeting runs from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. Eastern on Aug. 1, 2023.  To attend virtually, register by
August 1, 2023 on the Committee’s webpage. To submit comments, send by11:59 p.m. ET on Aug. 15,
2023 through the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Docket NRCS-2023-0014.

1400 Independence Ave. SW
Washington, DC 20250

Contact:
FPAC.BC.Press@usda.gov

For special accommodations, contact Markus Holliday
at UrbanAgricultureFederalAdvisoryCommittee@usda.gov.

Additional details are available in the Federal Register notice.

More Information

The Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production was established through the 2018 Farm Bill. It is
led by NRCS and works in partnership with numerous USDA agencies that support urban agriculture and
innovative production. The Committee is part of a broad USDA investment in urban agriculture. Other efforts
include:

 Investing up to $7.5 million for Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production competitive grants in
fiscal year 2023.
 Investing up to $9.5 million for Composting and Food Waste Reduction (CFWR) pilot projects for
fiscal year 2023.
 Renewing the People’s Garden movement — join the People’s Garden community with gardens
across the country; grow using sustainable practices that benefit people and wildlife; and teach about
gardening and resilient, local food systems.
 Providing technical and financial assistance through NRCS conservation programs.
 Organizing 17 Farm Service Agency urban county committees.
 Investing nearly $133 million in grants through the Agricultural Marketing Service’s Local
Agriculture Market Program (LAMP) that develop, coordinate, and expand producer-to-consumer
marketing, local and regional food markets, and local food enterprises.
 Helping child nutrition program operators incorporate local foods through the Food and Nutrition
Services Farm to School Program.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. Under the Biden-Harris
administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and
regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy, and nutritious food
in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart
food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities
throughout America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and
building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit usda.gov.