WASHINGTON, D.C.- Rural and urban residents struggling to obtain healthy and nourishing food could soon get help from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, which was recently granted a $25 million cooperative agreement to improve local supply chains by connecting regional buyers and sellers of fresh food. UNL is set to lead this effort, but will work with partner organizations and producers in a five-state region.

UNL will focus on expanding digital tools and traditional outreach to local farmers growing vegetables, fruits, and other products, who will then be better connected to nearby distributors, wholesalers, and retailers. UNL will also be utilizing a new Heartland Regional Foods Business Center, located on UNL's East Campus, and will serve Nebraska, Kansas, Iowa, Missouri, and Oklahoma from this location.

Mary Emery, who directs Rural Prosperity Nebraska, the UNL group leading the five-state coalition, said the Covid-19 pandemic significantly complicated American supply chains for all kinds of products, including fresh produce. "One of the challenges for local consumers in the more rural areas is getting access to local produce, or any produce at all," said Emery, "If I have really great crops, and I want to get them three towns over, that's really hard to do."

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