The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is reminding specialty crop growers that assistance is available for producers who incur eligible on-farm expenses to obtain or renew a certification through the Food Safety Certification for Specialty Crops (FSCSC) program. Producers can apply for assistance with their calendar year 2023 expenses through Jan. 31. FSCSC covers a percentage of the operation’s cost of obtaining or renewing its certification, as well as a portion of related expenses.
Applicants must meet the definition of a small business or very small business and have paid eligible expenses related to the 2023 certification. Specialty crop operations may receive assistance for the following costs:
- Developing a food-safety plan for first-time food-safety certification
- Maintaining or updating an existing food-safety plan
- Food-safety certification
- Certification upload fees
- Microbiological testing for products, soil amendments and water
- Training
FSCSC payments are calculated separately for each category of eligible costs. A higher payment rate has been set for socially disadvantaged, limited resource, beginning and veteran farmers and ranchers. Details can be found here.
USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) will issue payments after the application period closes. If calculated payments exceed the amount of available funding, payments will be prorated.
Interested specialty crop producers can apply by completing the FSA-888, Food Safety Certification for Specialty Crops Program (FSCSC) application. The application, along with other required documents, can be submitted to the FSA office at any USDA Service Center. Specialty crop growers can also call 877-508-8364 to speak directly with a USDA employee for assistance.
Recently, USDA announced a new effort to further support the U.S. specialty crops sector and increase the competitiveness of its products. More information can be found here.
Source: USDA FSA