Regional Environmental Council Gets $28,000 Grant For Program

WORCESTER, MA—A Worcester organization was one of the recipients of $350,000 in grants from the state given to those that focus on specialty crops in Massachusetts.

The Baker-Polito Administration announced the awarding of approximately $350,000 in Specialty Crop Block Grants to 15 organizations across the Commonwealth. The block grants, which are funded through the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and administered by the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR), seek to support and promote specialty agricultural products through different strategies, such as a new website dedicated to marketing locally grown produce. According to the USDA, specialty crops are “fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture, and nursery crops (including floriculture).”

The Regional Environmental Council in Worcester got $27,805.07 to increase access to local foods through farmers markets (including a mobile market) in Worcester and increase produce sales and number of customers by promoting the new Healthy Incentives Program (HIP).

“The Massachusetts agricultural industry remains a vital component to local, regional, and state economies, and contained within its core is the harvesting and producing of specialty crops that are bought and sold around the world,” said Energy and Environmental Affairs (EEA) Secretary Matthew Beaton in a statement.

Specialty crops include cranberries, honey, maple, and herbs. This year’s grants, which total $342,330.36 for the 15 Massachusetts organizations, are authorized by the United States Farm Bill, and range from $10,000 to $64,000.

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