South Kingstown Farm Gets $102K Grant To Support Local Food System

SOUTH KINGSTOWN, RI — The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) has awarded over $1 million in grants to four local food businesses and organizations, including one in South Kingstown.

DEM officials said recipients of the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) grants "support the development of Rhode Island products and will support expanded capacity for the aggregation, processing, manufacturing, storing, transporting, wholesaling, and distribution of locally produced food products, including specialty crops, dairy, grains for consumption, aquaculture, and other food products, excluding meat and poultry." The funding comes from the American Rescue Plan through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

"I'm glad the state is distributing these federal RFSI funds that were made available under the Biden Administration to local projects that will strengthen the resilience in Rhode Island’s food system and create new revenue streams for small and mid-sized farmers and producers," U.S. Sen. Jack Reed (D-RI) said. "This federal investment will benefit food producers statewide and help get more fresh, Rhode Island-grown food and products to tables, grocery stores, and restaurants across the region and beyond."

South Kingstown's recipient was Brandon Family Farm in West Kingston, which secured a grant of $101,670. The farm will use the money to make several upgrades and additions to a farm building. This will allow it to aggregate and distribute over 75 tons of Rhode Island grown produce every year to grocery stores across the state through a collective purchasing agreement between at least eight different farms.

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