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News Releases from Region 04

Trump Administration Announces Assistance to Support Community Revitalization in Elba, Alabama through Local Food Enterprises

05/24/2018
Contact Information: 
James Pinkney (pinkney.james@epa.gov)
(404) 562-9183 (Direct), (404) 562-8400 (Main)

ATLANTA (May 24, 2018) – In support of the Trump Administration’s Executive Order on Promoting Agriculture and Rural Prosperity in America, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) joined other federal partners in announcing assistance to help Elba, Alabama and 15 other communities nationwide to revitalize downtowns, boost the local economy, improve public health, and protect the environment through local food enterprises.

The assistance is provided through Local Foods, Local Places (LFLP), a federal initiative that helps communities reinvest in their neighborhoods and improve quality of life as they develop the local food economy.

“America’s farmers and ranchers are some of the nation’s first environmentalists,” said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt. “We look forward to helping our community partners develop local food enterprises that support local farmers, improve public health, protect the environment, and grow local economies.”

In Elba, Restoration 154/Foundation154 will plan a central farmers market to spur downtown revitalization and help mitigate the loss of people traveling through downtown after the opening of a highway bypass. The workshop will also help identify strategies to make the downtown square more environmentally friendly, a longstanding goal of the city.
 

“By increasing access to healthy food, we are supporting healthy businesses and farmers, and developing local economies,” said EPA Region 4 Administrator Trey Glenn. “This partnership is good for public health, the economy and the environment.”

Through LFLP, partner communities work with a team of experts to identify local assets and opportunities that can support local food enterprises, and set goals for leveraging those resources in ways that spur revitalization. They then develop an implementation plan and help identify potential resources from the participating federal agencies to support implementation.

In 2018, LFLP is supported by EPA, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the Delta Regional Authority. Since its launch in 2014, LFLP has helped 78 communities across the country develop local food enterprises—such as farmer’s markets, community gardens, and cooperative grocery stores—that improve environmental, economic, and health outcomes.

The 16 communities receiving assistance today were selected from more than 75 applications. A summary of planned projects is provided below.

EPA is also releasing a new report to help other communities interested in growing their local food economy. Lessons from Community Leaders on Using Local Foods to Revitalize Downtowns summarizes experiences, successes, and challenges from LFLP partners who participated in a national LFLP Summit in Washington, D.C. in July 2017. An update on results from 2017 LFLP community projects is also now available.
For an update on 2017 LFLP projects:

To read the LFLP Lessons from Community Leaders report:

For more information on LFLP:

http://www.epa.gov/smartgrowth/local-foods-local-places