Local butcher Katie Adkins suddenly found herself in high demand when New Englanders decided to take matters into their own hands to address a COVID-created food supply chain crisis. Residents started raising their own livestock on small family farms and were clamoring for local processors to deliver “prime cuts” for their tables.
With an increased need for her butcher services, Katie turned to local nonprofit Berkshire Agriculture Ventures (BAV), whose mission is to support the development and viability of local farms and food businesses. As luck would have it, BAV had just received a USDA Rural Development Meat and Poultry Intermediary Relending Program Grant in the amount of $630,000. (Watch the video)
For BAV, this critical investment means being able to offer critical financing and technical support to help hundreds of local farms in rural Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York.
Source: usda.gov
Photo Credit: istock-apichsn
Categories: New York, Livestock, Beef Cattle, Poultry, Rural Lifestyle