USDA's StrikeForce Initiative Invests $23.5 Billion In Rural Communities, Expands To Four New States

Jan 18, 2016

Florida, Missouri, Montana and Ohio to Receive Enhanced Assistance for Persistent Poverty Areas

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today announced the expansion of the Department's StrikeForce for Rural Growth and Opportunity Initiative into high-poverty counties in Florida, Missouri, Montana, and Ohio. Launched in 2010, more than 1,500 StrikeForce partnerships have already helped USDA support nearly 190,000 projects and invest $23.5 billion in high-poverty areas in rural America.

"Growing the economy by investing in rural communities, farmers, makers and innovators, and increasing opportunities for families are keys to our nation's future," said Vilsack. "StrikeForce has proven to be an effective, collaborative process that builds partnerships and enables USDA to bring economic opportunity directly to rural Americans where they live and helps rural communities leverage their assets."

Currently, 85 percent of our country's persistent poverty counties are in rural America. More than one-third of rural Americans and one-in-four rural children live in poverty. Research has shown that even kids growing up in families earning as much as twice the poverty threshold are still nearly three times as likely as all other children to have poor health, are more likely to finish two fewer years of school, and are more likely to learn earn half as much money in their adult life.

USDA's StrikeForce delivers promising, sustainable results by building partnerships with community organizations, businesses, foundations, universities, faith-based and other groups to help challenged communities shape a future based on local assets and regional strengths. With the addition of Oklahoma and Puerto Rico in 2015, StrikeForce technical assistance reached people in 880 counties and parishes, helping USDA invest nearly $7.5 billion to create jobs, build homes, feed kids, assist farmers and conserve natural resources in some of the nation's most economically challenged areas.

Other significant, measurable results for 2015 include:

Helped create or save more than 5,800 jobs in high-poverty rural areas.

Assisted over 14,600 farmers and landowners to preserve natural resources and protect the environment.

Helped nearly10,000 farmers with farm loan assistance, almost three quarters of them socially disadvantaged or beginning farmers.

Provided more than 75 million summer meals to kids in StrikeForce states.

Altogether, 970 counties, parishes, boroughs, and census areas in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia and West Virginia are now eligible for "intensive care" through StrikeForce.

StrikeForce is part of the Obama Administration's commitment to address persistent poverty across America. USDA identifies census tracts with over 20 percent poverty (according to American Community Survey data) to identify sub-county pockets of poverty. As areas of persistent poverty are identified, USDA staff work with state, local and community officials to increase awareness of USDA programs and help build program participation through intensive community outreach and technical assistance. Visit www.usda.gov/StrikeForce.

USDA also works with other federal partners to synchronize and leverage related work underway through the White House placed-based priorities like the Promise Zone Initiative; the Rural IMPACT Demonstration; Local Foods, Local Places; and Strong Cities, Strong Communities.

Since 2009, USDA has made significant investments in the four states with counties receiving the StrikeForce designation:

In Florida, USDA invested nearly $61.6 billion between 2009 and 2015. This includes more than $6.5 billion in economic development to support affordable housing and create jobs; more than $1.4 billion in infrastructure development, including electricity, broadband and telecommunications, water, and community facilities; and more than $926 million through conservation efforts to protect Florida's land, water and air resources.

In Missouri, USDA invested more than $32.1 billion between 2009 and 2015. This includes more than $4.7 billion in economic development to support affordable housing and create jobs; more than $2.9 billion in infrastructure development, including electricity, broadband and telecommunications, water, and community facilities; and nearly $1.7 billion through conservation efforts to protect Missouri's land, water and air resources.

In Montana, USDA invested more than $11.4 billion between 2009 and 2015. This includes nearly $1.7 billion in economic development to support affordable housing and create jobs; nearly $828 million in infrastructure development, including electricity, broadband and telecommunications, water, and community facilities; and more than $1.2 billion through conservation efforts to protect Montana's land, water and air resources.

In Ohio, USDA invested more than $36.8 billion between 2009 and 2015. This includes nearly $4.2 billion in economic development to support affordable housing and create jobs; more than $952 million in infrastructure development, including electricity, broadband and telecommunications, water, and community facilities; and nearly $828 million through conservation efforts to protect Ohio's land, water and air resources.

President Obama's plan for rural America has brought about historic investment and resulted in stronger rural communities. Under the President's leadership, these investments in housing, community facilities, businesses and infrastructure have empowered rural America to continue leading the way – strengthening America's economy, small towns and rural communities.

Source: usda.gov

Video: The Investment Opportunities of Industrial Hemp

The fledgling U.S. hemp industry is decades behind countries like Canada, France and China, but according to impact investor and this week’s podcast guest, Pierre Berard, it could flourish into a $2.2 billion industry by 2030 and create thousands of jobs.

To reach its potential, what the hemp industry needs most right now, Berard said, is capital investment.

Last month, Berard published a report titled “Seeing the U.S. Industrial Hemp Opportunity — A Pioneering Venture for Investors and Corporations Driven by Environmental, Social and Financial Concerns” in which he lays out the case for investment.

It’s as if Berard, with this report, is waving a giant flag, trying to attract the eyes of investors, saying, “Look over here. Look at all this opportunity.”

Berard likens the burgeoning American hemp industry to a developing country.

“There is no capital. People don’t want to finance. This is too risky. And I was like, OK, this sounds like something for me,” he said.

As an impact investor who manages funds specializing in agro-processing companies, Berard now has his sights set on the U.S. hemp industry, which he believes has great economic value as well as social and environmental benefits.

He spent many years developing investment in the agriculture infrastructure of developing countries in Latin America and Africa, and said the hemp industry feels similar.

“It is very nascent and it is a very fragmented sector. You have pioneers and trailblazers inventing or reinventing the field after 80 years of prohibition,” he said. “So I feel very familiar with this context.”

On this week’s hemp podcast, Berard talks about the report and the opportunities available to investors in the feed, fiber and food sectors of the hemp industry.

Building an industry around an agricultural commodity takes time, he said. According to the report, “The soybean industry took about 50 years to become firmly established, from the first USDA imports in 1898 to the U.S. being the top worldwide producer in the 1950s.”

Berard has a plan to accelerate the growth of the hemp industry and sees a four-pillar approach to attract investment.

First, he said, the foundation of the industry is the relationship between farmers and processors at the local level.

Second, he said the industry needs what he calls a “federating body” that will represent it, foster markets and innovations, and reduce risk for its members and investors.

The third pillar is “collaboration with corporations that aim to secure or diversify their supply chains with sustainable products and enhance their ESG credentials. This will be key to funding the industry and creating markets,” he said.

The fourth pillar is investment. Lots of it. Over $1.6 billion over seven years. This money will come from government, corporations, individual investors, and philanthropic donors.

The 75-page report goes into detail about the hemp industry, its environmental and social impact, and the opportunities available to investors.

Read the report here: Seeing the U.S. Industrial Hemp Opportunity

Also on this episode, we check in with hemp and bison farmer Herb Grove from Brush Mountain Bison in Centre County, PA, where he grew 50 acres of hemp grain. We’ll hear about harvest and dry down and crushing the seed for oil and cake.