The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) administers programs that create domestic and international marketing opportunities for U.S. producers of food, fiber, and specialty crops.
The FMPP grant program aims to support and expand direct producer-to-consumer markets to improve the accessibility and availability of locally and regionally produced agricultural products. This includes supporting various direct marketing avenues such as farmers markets, roadside stands, agritourism activities, community-supported agriculture (CSA) programs, and online sales. The grant also supports the development of value-added agricultural products, devising marketing strategies for local foods and value-added products, enhancing regional food chain coordination, creating new business opportunities and strategies to minimize on-farm food waste, addressing the changing technology needs in direct marketing, and assisting with the costs related to achieving food safety certification and enhancing food safety practices and equipment.