The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) encourages urban producers, innovative producers, and other stakeholders to submit comments for and virtually attend the upcoming public meeting of the Federal Advisory Committee for Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production (Committee) on Nov. 29, 2023.
“USDA relies on input from the urban agriculture and innovative production community to develop programs that meet their needs,” said Terry Cosby, Chief of USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), which houses USDA’s Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production (OUAIP). “I encourage members of the public to attend and submit comments for the Committee.”
The committee is part of USDA’s efforts to support urban and innovative agriculture, creating a network for feedback. Members include agricultural producers and representatives from higher education or extension programs, non-profits, business and economic development, supply chains, and financing. The committee last met in August 2023.
About the Meeting
Topics for the upcoming meeting will include addressing public comments and discussing the following recommended topics:
- Federal crop insurance for innovative producers
- Research, extension, and education in innovative production
- Access to technical assistance
- Urban soil health and safety
- Scholarship and education support
The committee will deliberate and vote on proposed recommendations and address public comments during the meeting. USDA will share the agenda between 24 to 48 hours prior to the meeting on the committee’s webpage.
The virtual meeting will run from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. Eastern on Nov. 29, 2023. To attend virtually, register by Nov. 29, 2023, on the committee’s webpage. To submit comments, send them by 11:59 p.m. ET on Dec. 13, 2023, through the Federal eRulemaking Portal. Docket NRCS-2023-0019.
Source: usda.gov