Missouri's 2025 state budget includes less than a third of the federal funding the state received for Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program grants. More than a dozen producers with selected projects are without funding for now.
The day Emily Wright expected to hear whether her vegetable and flower farm in mid-Missouri would receive grant funding to expand their operations, she was anxious."I was out in the field and I was just doing like a million different things to try to keep myself busy…" Wright said about the day in July. "All I could think about is just waiting for this press release or this email."
Wright and her partner Paul Weber own Three Creeks Farm + Forest in Ashland. They sell their produce wholesale to places like restaurants and floral designers in the area.The grant would allow them to build a new barn on their property to add coolers and a space for washing and packaging. Their goal is to get more locally-grown vegetables and value-added goods, like pickles and hot sauce, to their customers– both from their farm and potentially others in the area.
Wright eventually got some good news. Their project was among 30 selected to receive a grant.But funding limitations in the Missouri state budget means they have to wait on the money. While 16 projects will get partial funding this fiscal year, Wright's is one of more than a dozen that cannot be funded for the time being.
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