United States Department of Agriculture

Agricultural Marketing Service

Supporting 

Local & Regional 

Food Systems

Helping American Farmers 

Feed the Country

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agricultural 

Marketing Service (AMS) works to improve opportunities for 

U.S. growers and producers, including those involved in local 

and regional food systems. Each year, AMS conducts research 

and provides technical services and grants that help thousands 

of agricultural food producers and businesses enhance their 

local food marketing efforts. 

Locally and regionally grown food is an estimated $12 billionper-year market. According to the 2017 Census of Agriculture, 

nearly 30,000 farmers and ranchers nationwide are now selling 

directly to retailers, institutions, and food hubs, and over 

130,000 farmers and ranchers are selling their products directly 

to consumers. That means more consumers are seeking farmfresh food, and more farmers—especially small and mid-size 

operations—are profiting from these new markets. 

AMS works to improve market access for producers and 

develop new markets through funding, technical assistance 

and research. AMS seeks to provide local food producers, 

markets and communities with easy access to ideas, innovations 

and research to grow and sustain a productive business. This 

information ensures that opportunities for U.S. food producers 

are readily available and communities are equipped to 

successfully grow and sell regionally produced foods.

Funding Opportunities 

AMS offers several grant programs 

that support local and regional 

food systems. Visit www.ams.

usda.gov/services/grants for more 

information.

Technical Assistance 

and Research 

An interdisciplinary staff of 

agricultural marketing specialists, 

economists and facility design 

experts study direct marketing 

practices and opportunities, 

including farmers markets and 

food hubs. AMS works with 

federal agencies and external 

partners to explore challenges and 

opportunities related to market 

access and development in local 

and regional food systems. 

USDA maintains an archive of 

publications and presentations 

authored by staff and research 

partners about local and regional 

food systems. View publications 

at www.ams.usda.gov/services/

local-regional.

www.ams.usda.gov

Wholesale Markets and 

Facility Design 

The team provides technical 

assistance and support to customers 

about the construction of new 

structures or the remodeling of 

existing ones. These facilities 

include wholesale markets, 

farmers markets, public markets, 

and food hubs, all of which are 

important parts of the national food 

distribution network. The facilities 

may be indoors or outdoors, a single 

building, or an industrial complex. 

Learn more at www.ams.usda.gov/

services/local-regional.

AMS coordinates local and 

regional food systems efforts 

across USDA through an 

interagency Local and Regional 

Food Working Group. Learn 

about other USDA programs, 

grants and loans that support 

the local and regional food 

sector at www.ams.usda.gov/

sites/default/files/media/

FoodSupplyChainFactSheet.pdf.
Agricultural Marketing Service Supporting Local and Regional Food Systems

National Agricultural Statistics 

Service (NASS) Partnership

AMS works with NASS to gather 

information on local and regional 

food systems through the Census 

of Agriculture, the Local Food 

Marketing Practices Survey, and the 

Farmers Market Managers Survey. 

These tools provide benchmarks 

and vital data for the sector and 

USDA to use in supporting the 

development of alternative market 

channels. 

The infographic (right) provides 

highlights from the 2019 Farmers 

Market Managers Survey. 

USDA Market News 

For more than 100 years, USDA 

Market News reports have given 

farmers, producers and other 

agricultural businesses the 

information they need to evaluate 

market conditions, identify trends, 

make purchasing decisions, 

monitor price patterns, evaluate 

transportation equipment needs, 

and accurately assess movement of 

agricultural products. The Local and 

Regional Food Market News reports 

provide producers and consumers a 

one-stop shop for reports on local 

and regional food outlets. To learn 

more, visit www. ams.usda.gov/

MarketNews. 

Marketing Resources, 

Opportunities, and 

Certifications 

USDA Local Food Directories 

The directories provide current 

information on farmers markets, 

community supported agriculture 

enterprises, food hubs and on-farm 

markets. As an easy, one-stop 

resource of local food business 

services, the directories are an 

important marketing tool used 

by consumers, app developers, 

policymakers and businesses to 

identify local and regional food 

sources. 

Each directory is voluntary. 

Managers of farmers markets, 

food hubs, community-supported 

agriculture (CSAs) operations and 

on-farm sales operations list their 

businesses through 

usdalocalfooddirectories.com.

USDA Grass-Fed Program for 

Small and Very Small Producers

This program is designed as a 

marketing tool for small and very 

small producers to certify that 

animals meet the requirements 

of the USDA-grass-fed marketing 

claim. Producers receive certificates 

that allow them to market their 

cattle or sheep as USDA-certified 

grass-fed, increasing demand for 

their products and creating access 

to new economic opportunities. 

Additional information is available 

at www.ams.usda.gov/services/

auditing/grass-fed-SVS. 

Selling Food to USDA 

Federal food and nutrition programs 

include the AMS small business 

set-aside program, which allows 

small businesses to participate in 

the Federal purchase program by 

having them compete against other 

similarly sized businesses. Visit 

www.ams.usda.gov/selling-food

to learn more about selling your 

products to USDA.

Sign up for From the Ground Up, a monthly digest featuring 

news and notes on AMS’ local and regional food systems work. 

Visit https://tinyurl.com/y2yfk67l to subscribe.

USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender.

November 2020

Photo credit: USDA