Written by: Elizabeth Sachs
The Plant Based Foods Association and Plant Based Foods Institute recently submitted comments in response to the USDA’s request for information on the Specialty Crops Competitiveness Initiative (SCCI), highlighting opportunities to strengthen agricultural production of the key ingredients for plant-based food. The SCCI reflects the USDA’s intention to improve research, market development, and assistance for farmers to better support the specialty crops industry, which includes nearly all fruit, nut, and vegetable crop production (pulses, including dry peas, beans, lentils, and chickpeas, are classified by USDA as vegetables). The initiative is focused on administrative improvements to increase the impact of existing Farm Bill programs, especially in light of current and future challenges faced by the industry related to climate change and global market dynamics. The plant-based food industry has an important stake in shaping specialty crop programs to build sustainable ingredient supply chains from farm to fork.
Opportunities for Plant-Based Agriculture in the U.S.
These supply chains are a critical step in building a resilient, competitive plant-based food industry.
Many countries in the EU and Asia have begun to include the plant-based sector in their national agricultural development strategies to capture some of the emerging national and global markets for plant-based foods and diverse plant protein ingredients. They’re investing in seed breeding and cropping systems research and incentives and technical support for farmers to grow more pulse crops, along with middle supply chain processing and distribution infrastructure. Land use shifts associated with a turn toward plant-rich diets also represent potential opportunities to address national climate goals, and for some countries, to reduce reliance on imported crops for livestock feed. Here in the U.S., there has been little attention to how global plant-based market dynamics may eventually impact the agricultural economy, or how the domestic growth of plant-based foods can stimulate new opportunities for farmers.
With rising interest in plant-based eating and the Biden Administration beginning to focus on the role of farming systems in national climate goals, now is the time to lay the foundation for a strong supply-side strategy for the plant-based food industry. In its early stages, the plant-based meat industry relied almost exclusively on commodity side streams, e.g. soy and wheat proteins. The future of plant-based meat alternatives will include diverse plant proteins, many of the inputs for which are specialty crops. More broadly, the “protein transition” is part of a wider shift to sustainable diets, requiring significant increases in overall consumption of vegetables and fruits. Nine in ten Americans don’t meet the intake of vegetables and fruits recommended by the Dietary Guidelines of America. Improving market opportunities for specialty crops is a prime strategy to better align agricultural production with consumers’ nutritional needs and to drive full-fledged uptake of more plant-rich diets.
Unlike commodity grains, many specialty crops are produced by small- and medium-sized farms. And because the sector includes so many different crops, numerous individual crops are not produced at high enough volumes to influence demand. Support is needed to promote consumption and expand markets; specialty crop interests have long called on USDA to address this need with a combined checkoff-type program. In recent years, specialty crops have faced increasing competition from cheaper imports, as well as from manufactured products falsely implying high fruit or vegetable content. This is where the plant-based food industry has a key opportunity to get on the agenda as a partner and solution provider. As the USDA looks to make specialty crop programs more accessible and responsive to farmers, and to help them compete in domestic and international markets, the plant-based food industry should be looking at how it can help grow robust supply chains for a diversity of specialty crops produced by American farmers.
Research and Innovation for Specialty Crops
Part of the aim of the SCCI is to enhance research on specialty crops. The Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI), administered by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), supports breeding and production science, along with processing, technology, policy, and market research. The market research is critical: to date there has been virtually no major analysis of demand for crops for plant-based foods, or long-term projections to identify major forces affecting markets for these crops; prospects for growth, consumption, and trade; and future price trends. Even in the current market, there’s been little effort to characterize and address import substitution opportunities. To wit, U.S. farmers and processors have been heavily investing in yellow pea production for the plant-based meat and protein drink industries, while nearly $300 million worth of pea protein has been imported from China each year.
Innovative agricultural research with promising applications is needed to optimize and bring more specialty crops to market, including pulse crops for use in plant-based foods. Federal research dollars should be prioritized for collaborative research between plant scientists and food scientists in the growing number of land-grant universities with plant-based R&D programs. In addition to breeding for functional traits for plant-based foods, adaptive cultivars are needed that perform in a variety of geographies and cropping systems, such as short-season legumes that can fit into current grain rotations. As climate change introduces new emerging and invasive species and pathogenic risks, weed management and emerging pest and disease threats are key areas of concern. Focus is also needed on phytonutrient content, nutrient uptake, and interactions with soil health, cropping systems, and cultural practices.
Supporting Farmers and Building Robust Supply Chains
Specialty crop programs support more than research. Each year states receive Specialty Crop Block Grant (SCBG) funding from the Agricultural Marketing Service, and then make competitive grants for an array of projects to farmer groups, land-grant universities, and nonprofits. In addition to applied research, SCBG can support production training and technical support for farmers; adoption of organic and sustainable production practices; value-added processing; good agricultural, handling, and manufacturing practices; improvements to distribution; farm-to-school programs, and many other initiatives. SCBG grants enable states to prioritize crops important to their economies, engage specialty crop experts through the Cooperative Extension Service, and facilitate farmer participation and leadership in industry development.
One of the most important means of advancing specialty crops is through USDA’s procurement and nutrition assistance programs. These programs are especially important to counteract the disproportionate marketing of poor-quality foods to low-income consumers. USDA’s direct purchasing can move large volumes of fruits and vegetables to food banks, schools and childcare centers, tribal governments, and other sites. The Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, piloted in the 2002 Farm Bill, was found to increase consumption among low-income students, reduce plate waste, and even shrink obesity rates by three percent. The Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP), which increases SNAP participants’ power to buy fruits and vegetables, including Produce Prescriptions, also has been shown to increase consumption.
SCCI also aims to improve the conservation and crop insurance titles of the Farm Bill on behalf of specialty crops. Conservation programs like EQIP are consistently over-subscribed, with smaller, diversified, specialty crop growers winning fewer and smaller contracts than large commodity producers. While some specialty crops enjoy effective crop insurance policies, most have no safety net coverage to reduce losses due to crop failures. Development of accessible, workable risk management products is essential to help level the playing field for specialty crop producers.
Embracing Plant-Based Agriculture for Economic and Environmental Prosperity
A more nutritious, sustainable, plant-rich food system will support a strong agricultural economy. The growth of plant-based foods could eventually have major effects on U.S. agricultural value chains. Alternative value chains are needed to offset potential reductions in livestock, corn, and soy production and support a just transition for farmers and rural communities. The plant-based industry should be engaging with farming interests on these efforts and helping to make a convincing case for reorienting agricultural policy. By boosting the profitable production of a broad range of healthy crops, SCCI is just one of many important opportunities to establish plant-based foods as a sustainable solution and to build support for the plant-based transition among a critical segment of food and farming stakeholders.
Building a Plant-Based Supply Chain: PBFA/I Comments on Specialty Crops Competitiveness Initiative
Written by: Elizabeth Sachs
The Plant Based Foods Association and Plant Based Foods Institute recently submitted comments in response to the USDA’s request for information on the Specialty Crops Competitiveness Initiative (SCCI), highlighting opportunities to strengthen agricultural production of the key ingredients for plant-based food. The SCCI reflects the USDA’s intention to improve research, market development, and assistance for farmers to better support the specialty crops industry, which includes nearly all fruit, nut, and vegetable crop production (pulses, including dry peas, beans, lentils, and chickpeas, are classified by USDA as vegetables). The initiative is focused on administrative improvements to increase the impact of existing Farm Bill programs, especially in light of current and future challenges faced by the industry related to climate change and global market dynamics. The plant-based food industry has an important stake in shaping specialty crop programs to build sustainable ingredient supply chains from farm to fork.
Opportunities for Plant-Based Agriculture in the U.S.
These supply chains are a critical step in building a resilient, competitive plant-based food industry.
Many countries in the EU and Asia have begun to include the plant-based sector in their national agricultural development strategies to capture some of the emerging national and global markets for plant-based foods and diverse plant protein ingredients. They’re investing in seed breeding and cropping systems research and incentives and technical support for farmers to grow more pulse crops, along with middle supply chain processing and distribution infrastructure. Land use shifts associated with a turn toward plant-rich diets also represent potential opportunities to address national climate goals, and for some countries, to reduce reliance on imported crops for livestock feed. Here in the U.S., there has been little attention to how global plant-based market dynamics may eventually impact the agricultural economy, or how the domestic growth of plant-based foods can stimulate new opportunities for farmers.
With rising interest in plant-based eating and the Biden Administration beginning to focus on the role of farming systems in national climate goals, now is the time to lay the foundation for a strong supply-side strategy for the plant-based food industry. In its early stages, the plant-based meat industry relied almost exclusively on commodity side streams, e.g. soy and wheat proteins. The future of plant-based meat alternatives will include diverse plant proteins, many of the inputs for which are specialty crops. More broadly, the “protein transition” is part of a wider shift to sustainable diets, requiring significant increases in overall consumption of vegetables and fruits. Nine in ten Americans don’t meet the intake of vegetables and fruits recommended by the Dietary Guidelines of America. Improving market opportunities for specialty crops is a prime strategy to better align agricultural production with consumers’ nutritional needs and to drive full-fledged uptake of more plant-rich diets.
Unlike commodity grains, many specialty crops are produced by small- and medium-sized farms. And because the sector includes so many different crops, numerous individual crops are not produced at high enough volumes to influence demand. Support is needed to promote consumption and expand markets; specialty crop interests have long called on USDA to address this need with a combined checkoff-type program. In recent years, specialty crops have faced increasing competition from cheaper imports, as well as from manufactured products falsely implying high fruit or vegetable content. This is where the plant-based food industry has a key opportunity to get on the agenda as a partner and solution provider. As the USDA looks to make specialty crop programs more accessible and responsive to farmers, and to help them compete in domestic and international markets, the plant-based food industry should be looking at how it can help grow robust supply chains for a diversity of specialty crops produced by American farmers.
Research and Innovation for Specialty Crops
Part of the aim of the SCCI is to enhance research on specialty crops. The Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI), administered by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), supports breeding and production science, along with processing, technology, policy, and market research. The market research is critical: to date there has been virtually no major analysis of demand for crops for plant-based foods, or long-term projections to identify major forces affecting markets for these crops; prospects for growth, consumption, and trade; and future price trends. Even in the current market, there’s been little effort to characterize and address import substitution opportunities. To wit, U.S. farmers and processors have been heavily investing in yellow pea production for the plant-based meat and protein drink industries, while nearly $300 million worth of pea protein has been imported from China each year.
Innovative agricultural research with promising applications is needed to optimize and bring more specialty crops to market, including pulse crops for use in plant-based foods. Federal research dollars should be prioritized for collaborative research between plant scientists and food scientists in the growing number of land-grant universities with plant-based R&D programs. In addition to breeding for functional traits for plant-based foods, adaptive cultivars are needed that perform in a variety of geographies and cropping systems, such as short-season legumes that can fit into current grain rotations. As climate change introduces new emerging and invasive species and pathogenic risks, weed management and emerging pest and disease threats are key areas of concern. Focus is also needed on phytonutrient content, nutrient uptake, and interactions with soil health, cropping systems, and cultural practices.
Supporting Farmers and Building Robust Supply Chains
Specialty crop programs support more than research. Each year states receive Specialty Crop Block Grant (SCBG) funding from the Agricultural Marketing Service, and then make competitive grants for an array of projects to farmer groups, land-grant universities, and nonprofits. In addition to applied research, SCBG can support production training and technical support for farmers; adoption of organic and sustainable production practices; value-added processing; good agricultural, handling, and manufacturing practices; improvements to distribution; farm-to-school programs, and many other initiatives. SCBG grants enable states to prioritize crops important to their economies, engage specialty crop experts through the Cooperative Extension Service, and facilitate farmer participation and leadership in industry development.
One of the most important means of advancing specialty crops is through USDA’s procurement and nutrition assistance programs. These programs are especially important to counteract the disproportionate marketing of poor-quality foods to low-income consumers. USDA’s direct purchasing can move large volumes of fruits and vegetables to food banks, schools and childcare centers, tribal governments, and other sites. The Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program, piloted in the 2002 Farm Bill, was found to increase consumption among low-income students, reduce plate waste, and even shrink obesity rates by three percent. The Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program (GusNIP), which increases SNAP participants’ power to buy fruits and vegetables, including Produce Prescriptions, also has been shown to increase consumption.
SCCI also aims to improve the conservation and crop insurance titles of the Farm Bill on behalf of specialty crops. Conservation programs like EQIP are consistently over-subscribed, with smaller, diversified, specialty crop growers winning fewer and smaller contracts than large commodity producers. While some specialty crops enjoy effective crop insurance policies, most have no safety net coverage to reduce losses due to crop failures. Development of accessible, workable risk management products is essential to help level the playing field for specialty crop producers.
Embracing Plant-Based Agriculture for Economic and Environmental Prosperity
A more nutritious, sustainable, plant-rich food system will support a strong agricultural economy. The growth of plant-based foods could eventually have major effects on U.S. agricultural value chains. Alternative value chains are needed to offset potential reductions in livestock, corn, and soy production and support a just transition for farmers and rural communities. The plant-based industry should be engaging with farming interests on these efforts and helping to make a convincing case for reorienting agricultural policy. By boosting the profitable production of a broad range of healthy crops, SCCI is just one of many important opportunities to establish plant-based foods as a sustainable solution and to build support for the plant-based transition among a critical segment of food and farming stakeholders.
Categories
Most Recent Posts