Making clear her commitment to support local agriculture, Delegate Stacey Plaskett hosted a roundtable for farmers, producers and funders Friday that gave participants a chance to air challenges – from rocky soil growing to the need for more technical grant assistance – and brainstorm solutions.
“We are really a microcosm of what’s going on around the world, but we are also on the frontlines in so many ways because of our isolation, because of our geographic location, that we can really be a model for so many other places in best practices if we’re doing things right and we’re working collaboratively,” the Delegate said at the forum, hosted at the University of the Virgin Islands’ St. Thomas campus.
On a federal level, Plaskett said Congress has been working on a new farm bill that focuses on streamlining the movement of agricultural products to market, innovative agricultural methods and fortifying supply chains.
“We’re committed to dismantling obstacles that have historically prevented underserved farmers from accessing opportunities,” she said.
For local producers and farmers participating Friday, one of the main challenges was access to funding, particularly grants that they either don’t know about or don’t have the technical assistance to complete.
“We’re not able to do everything that we set out to do. We’re trying to meet all the needs of the Virgin Islands and we’re trying to do it completely unsupported by the federal government. Come to find out in agriculture that the issues are largely similar – there is a frightening lack of support for the people that are trying to do the work,” said Tyrone Reid, whose Smart Life Farms focuses on food security and cultivating community gardens within the territory.
Reid said he’s discouraged by the lack of inclusion and support in federal programs, adding that the Virgin Islands is “rarely included” and that his farm has not been approved for a “single grant that we’ve applied for.” From the forum Friday, he said that he wanted to grab as much technical support, funding assistance and available resources as possible and share them with his colleagues.
Meanwhile, Shelli Brin of Que Cera Farms on St. Thomas added that even the smallest environmental factor – in her case, the washing out of an access road that wasn’t immediately rebuilt – could deeply affect local producers’ profitability. Brin also spoke about the impacts of climate change, rocky soil and lack of subsidies, saying that the answer isn’t to throw a loan at farmers but to offer the kind of meaningful support that would encourage more to enter the industry instead of leaving it.
Virgin Islands Agricultural Plan
Last February, Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. signed into law a bill, sponsored by Sen. Donna Frett-Gregory, funding $2.2 million for the V.I. Agricultural Plan — the official agriculture plan for the territory. The bill first establishes the Agriculture Business Center in the Small Business Development Center to provide resources for small, large and commercial farm businesses. Helpful resources can include bookkeeping, technical skills, grant writing, training needs and certifications. Aid also includes help with establishing farm cooperatives. To carry out these purposes, $250,000 was also appropriated.
The bill further specifies that the Food and Farm Advisory Committee can amend the V.I. Agriculture Plan, with amendments submitted to the V.I. Legislature, which can also make changes to the plan.
Meanwhile, the University of the Virgin Islands will receive $250,000 annually for writing grants to apply for federal funds for water, irrigation, infrastructure and “other agriculture needs for the Virgin Islands.” Another $120,000 will be awarded to UVI for a grant writer for the Food and Farm Advisory Committee.
Speaking for the Food and Farm Advisory Council at Friday’s roundtable, UVI President and Council co-chair David Hall assured Reid, Brin and other participants that help is on the way.
“There is a grant matching fund that will soon be available for farmers if individuals are going for grants on the federal or local level, and as it requires some matching funds, we will be able to provide that matching component,” Hall said. “Maybe the lack of success in going after grants is not having the technical assistance and support that is needed … and through the university-sponsored programs, the Agricultural Plan has funded the grant writers to assist farmers, there will be training available to help, and monitoring and that’s going to be very real. I recognize that loans are not the answer, but working with the Economic Development Authority, a part of the plan is to have loans that are not only available but accessible to farmers,” he said.
Meanwhile, Brennan Washington of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture grants and outreach program encouraged participants to think of funding as another tool in their toolbox. Not having technical assistance when applying shouldn’t be used as an excuse because once no one applies, the territory misses out on critical funding, which could amount to hundreds of millions in agricultural dollars, he said.
“If you know about the programs, why are you not applying to them? Saying that you don’t have technical assistance or the skill set, while valid, is really not an acceptable excuse anymore. Apply for them because applying and not receiving the money gives people like myself or Congresswoman Plaskett something to hang our hats on when we go to talk to sources in Washington who dole out these funds and say, the Virgin Islands isn’t getting any of this money,” he said.
