http://afsic.nal.usda.gov/ (301) 504-6559 10301 Baltimore Avenue, Room 123 Beltsville, MD 20705 The Alternative Farming Systems Information Center (AFSIC) specializes in identifying resources about sustainable food systems and practices in support of USDA’s effort to ensure a sustainable future for agriculture and farmers worldwide. Sustainability & Resilience Data/Information/Knowledge 400

http://afsic.nal.usda.gov/ (301) 504-6559 10301 Baltimore Avenue, Room 123 Beltsville, MD 20705 The Alternative Farming Systems Information Center (AFSIC) specializes in identifying resources about sustainable food systems and practices in support of USDA’s effort to ensure a sustainable future for agriculture and farmers worldwide. Sustainability & Resilience Data/Information/Knowledge 400

Food Access, Funding/Financing/Lending, Local and Regional Food Systems Access to affordable credit and financing is a huge barrier for many small-scale food enterprises focused on sustainable production and increasing healthy food access. One reason for this gap is a lack of knowledge about sustainable farm and food businesses, such as an understanding of business plans […]

Food Access, Funding/Financing/Lending, Local and Regional Food Systems Access to affordable credit and financing is a huge barrier for many small-scale food enterprises focused on sustainable production and increasing healthy food access. One reason for this gap is a lack of knowledge about sustainable farm and food businesses, such as an understanding of business plans […]

Local and Regional Food Systems, Policy & Advocacy State legislatures continue to take an active interest in policy strategies that support local and regional food systems and increase access to local food options. The National Conference on State Legislatures (NCSL) has tracked state legislation regarding local food production and access since the early 2000s. In […]

Local and Regional Food Systems, Policy & Advocacy State legislatures continue to take an active interest in policy strategies that support local and regional food systems and increase access to local food options. The National Conference on State Legislatures (NCSL) has tracked state legislation regarding local food production and access since the early 2000s. In […]

Farm to Institution, Food Systems, Local and Regional Food Systems, Mapping Last month, the USDA released the data from the 2015 Farm to School Census, the second such census USDA has conducted. The data showed that farm to school is on the rise nationally. Visit this interactive map to find out how your state fared, […]

Farm to Institution, Food Systems, Local and Regional Food Systems, Mapping Last month, the USDA released the data from the 2015 Farm to School Census, the second such census USDA has conducted. The data showed that farm to school is on the rise nationally. Visit this interactive map to find out how your state fared, […]

Food Access, Nutrition, Policy & Advocacy Becca Segal, Jessie Hewins, Mieka Sanderson, Catlin Nchako, Zoë Neuberger, Lexin Cai, and Alison Maurice In the 2015–2016 school year, its second year of nationwide availability, more than 18,000 high-poverty schools, representing nearly 8.5 million students in nearly 3,000 school districts across the country, have participated in the Community […]

Food Access, Nutrition, Policy & Advocacy Becca Segal, Jessie Hewins, Mieka Sanderson, Catlin Nchako, Zoë Neuberger, Lexin Cai, and Alison Maurice In the 2015–2016 school year, its second year of nationwide availability, more than 18,000 high-poverty schools, representing nearly 8.5 million students in nearly 3,000 school districts across the country, have participated in the Community […]

Farming, Policy & Advocacy USDA is launching a year-long, progressive storytelling effort that focuses on capturing how the Department under the Obama Administration has invested in and achieved results for farmers, ranchers, rural communities and every American. Today, USDA supports and invests in local and regional food projects, but that wasn’t always the case. Seven […]

Farming, Policy & Advocacy USDA is launching a year-long, progressive storytelling effort that focuses on capturing how the Department under the Obama Administration has invested in and achieved results for farmers, ranchers, rural communities and every American. Today, USDA supports and invests in local and regional food projects, but that wasn’t always the case. Seven […]

Local and Regional Food Systems As consumers across the nation express a growing interest in a closer connection to their food producers—whether through access to more localized markets and/or shorter supply chains—cities and regions have begun to regard the expansion of local food marketing activities as a critical component of their economic development strategies. In […]

Local and Regional Food Systems As consumers across the nation express a growing interest in a closer connection to their food producers—whether through access to more localized markets and/or shorter supply chains—cities and regions have begun to regard the expansion of local food marketing activities as a critical component of their economic development strategies. In […]