Please join us for our virtual 2025 End of Legislative Session Policy Convening on July 2 at 1pm: Zoom

We will share details on bill outcomes through our Bills We Watched slides, and advocates for food systems bills will present on the 2025 legislative session, their process and specific bill outcomes

There are multiple RFPs out for major funders in Oregon and food systems organizations are planning for future federal funding requests. It is core to OCFSN’s mission to help food systems organizations make their funding requests more competitive through collaboration and information sharing. 

To that end we would like to learn what you are working on and your proposal plans. Please complete this form if you are planning to apply for an upcoming funding opportunity (Meyer Memorial Trust, Oregon Community Foundation, others) and would like to share your plans and learn about other applications that may be similar or would like connections to other orgs/projects to collaborate with.

The biannual Oregon Veggie Rx Census survey is here! If you operate a Veggie Rx or food-as-medicine program in Oregon, please complete the survey to help the working group understand the landscape in our state. Our last Veggie Rx Census was completed in 2023 and with all the changes to federal funding, we want to track changes to programming across Oregon. 

The 2025 census aims to capture a snapshot of the current state of Veggie Rx programming in Oregon. Change is on the horizon due to federal funding priority changes and it is valuable to understand the functionality, funding, and populations served before these changes impact program delivery.

The Veggie Rx WG Steering Committee will de-identify data to the best of our ability and share results back with the working group once all responses are submitted and the data are organized. To have your program included, please complete this short census survey by August 1, 2025. 

- Veggie Rx Working Group Steering Committee

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is under serious threat at the federal level. If the Budget Reconciliation Bill is passed, Oregon would be forced to absorb $850 million in new costs per biennium. This would severely reduce, or eliminate entirely, food aid for families, kids, seniors, and immigrants. 

The Oregon Hunger Task Force (OHTF) has been tasked by Governor Kotek's office to examine and map out Oregon’s food safety net network. We're attempting to capture all of the ways that people access food outside of state and federal systems. The goal is to produce a report for the Governor that offers the Task Force’s assessment of how federal SNAP cuts will affect specific regions, demographic groups, and Oregon’s broader food system. This is an opportunity to provide a data-informed narrative that illustrates how the food safety net operates—and to highlight opportunities for deeper, sustained investment.

Ultimately, we aim to make a strong case for how Oregon can support Oregon, independent of federal dollars. We anticipate including recommendations for investments from the state, as well as from philanthropic and business sectors, to strengthen these vital systems.

Take Survey

Who should take this survey? 

Anyone feeding their community in any capacity: direct service from orgs, mutual aid, etc., free food pop-ups, meal services, gleaners, non-Oregon Food Bank Food pantries, small farm CSAs or donators, etc.

If you have questions, are interested in learning more about this work, or would like support filling out the survey, please email chris@oregonhunger.org

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Also, you're invited! 

You're invited to join the Oregon Hunger Task Force (OHTF) for our upcoming virtual OHTF Quarterly Meeting on July 22, 2025, from 10:00 to 11:30 AM. We’ll be joined by representatives from Oregon’s federal delegation offices and Governor Kotek’s office.

This meeting will focus on the current landscape of food security efforts in Oregon. It offers a space for Task Force members and community partners to share updates, raise concerns, and discuss challenges or barriers they are facing.

Our quarterly meetings—held twice per year—have historically fostered thoughtful, generative conversations that lead to meaningful collaboration and impactful change. We hope you can attend and be part of the dialogue.

RSVP HERE for the virtual OHTF Quarterly Meeting on July 22, 2025, from 10:00 to 11:30 AM.

Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" threatens to cut over 100,000 Oregonians off SNAP and shift $850 million in costs to our state. Join the Save OR SNAP Coalition kickoff call on Monday, July 7 at 4:00pm to learn more about how these cuts would impact Oregon communities, hear from those directly affected, and help shape our statewide response. Register here to get involved.

Update on HB2979: Funding Renewal for Disaster Resilience Grants for Farmers & Ranchers, Food Hubs and Farmers Markets

Thank you so much for all of your support for HB 2979, the Food Systems Resilience bill. 

The bill had broad support from the agriculture and food systems community (including you!) and from many members of the legislature. Unfortunately, the funding request wasn't prioritized and so it ultimately didn't pass. Legislative leadership’s decision on what was funded was heavily influenced by the uncertainty around federal budget cuts, which impacted the State’s budget and how much leadership was willing and able to allocate to programs like these.

Thank you to all of you who provided written or verbal testimony at hearings and met with, or emailed, your legislators. We generated a truly incredible amount of community support for this bill: 20 sponsors from both sides of the aisle; nearly 300 endorsements; and meetings with 31 legislative offices, where we were joined by 16 constituents, including some of you! This effort did not go unnoticed by legislators, and if it had been a year with a better economic outlook, we almost certainly would have succeeded.

We are grateful for your support, and your advocacy for food systems resilience funding. Though factors beyond our control ultimately shaped funding decisions, we demonstrated incredible community support, and we’re exploring future opportunities for renewing funding for these critical programs!

Farmer & Rancher and Food Hub Disaster Resilience Grant Program Reports:

OCFSN has completed funding dispersal of the second and final round of our 2024-2025 Farmer & Rancher Disaster Resilience Grant and Food Hub Worker Safety & Infrastructure Grant Programs. 

• Round Two and Final Distribution Report for the Farmer & Rancher Disaster Resilience Grant Program

• Round Two Report for the Food Hub Worker Safety & Infrastructure Grant Program

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Over the past two years, OCFSN has distributed grant funding to Oregon’s small and historically underserved producers and food hubs to be more resilient to climate impacts such as extreme weather, heat, smoke and drought. 

In 2023 the Oregon Legislature allocated $2.65 million for the Farmer & Rancher Disaster Resilience Grant Program and $1.5 million for the  Food Hub Worker Safety & Infrastructure Grant Program. These programs built on the successful OCFSN 2022 Farmer and Rancher Disaster Relief Program. The Oregon Farmers Market Association and Farmers Market Fund also administer partner programs from the same funding source to support farmers market resilience.

In 2024 and 2025, 181 small farms and ranches across Oregon were awarded a total of $2.45 million to improve on-farm disaster resilience. In the same time period, 39 food hubs across Oregon were awarded a total of just over $1 million. 

Farmer & Rancher Grant Program Outcomes:

The Program prioritized funding for historically underserved farmers and ranchers and those located in regions most impacted by drought. OCFSN relied on its large network of partners and prioritized supporting applicants through extensive outreach, info sessions, office hours and direct support.

• 432 applications requesting $7.5 million for disaster resilience projects were received over the two years

• Of the 181 awards: 

  • 79 were to operations located in drought impacted counties

  • 137 went to farmers and ranchers in their first 10 years of farming

  • 166 went to farmers and ranchers who identified as part of an Environmental Justice Community.

    • Environmental Justice Communities as defined by the State of Oregon include communities of color, communities experiencing lower incomes, communities experiencing health inequities, tribal communities, rural communities, remote communities, coastal communities, communities with limited infrastructure and other communities traditionally underrepresented in public processes and adversely harmed by environmental and health hazards, including seniors, youth and persons with disabilities.

• Number of Disaster Resilience Projects by Category: many applications had multiple projects that address several of our project categories resulting in the totals below exceeding the award total.

  • Irrigation and Water Efficiency - 99

  • Shading and Cooling - 71

  • Purchase, Rental, or Refurbishment of Equipment - 67

  • Soil Health Management - 51

  • Other Crop Management - 36

  • Other - 20

  • Ecosystem Management - 19

  • Monitoring or Research - 9

  • Planning - 2

• Grants were awarded in every region of Oregon:

  • 54 - Willamette Valley

  • 36 - Southern Oregon

  • 27 - Portland Metro

  • 23 - Central Oregon

  • 18 - Northeast Oregon

  • 10 - Mid Columbia

  • 5 - Southeast Oregon

  • 5 - North Coast

  • 3 - South Coast

• Testimonials:

  • The Plot Chickens in Burns received funding for drip irrigation, shade cloth, water troughs and irrigation pipes. “Burns Oregon is a very remote location. We are considered a "Food Desert" and fresh, local food options are slim to none. The assistance received from this grant provided my small farm the opportunity to grow my business and grow local vegetables in this desert area that has an extremely short growing season. These funds make such a huge impact in this community that is extremely lacking in local, fresh food.”

  • Groundswell Farm LLC in Langlois received funding for a new permitted irrigation pond to replace curtailed instream water right during peak summer irrigation season. “Farming has never been easy, but climate change is making it exponentially harder every year. These grant funds offer small, under-resourced farms like ours a critical opportunity to make strategic investments so we can adapt towards greater resiliency. We tip our hats to the Oregon legislature for allocating these urgently needed funds to support local and regional food systems, small family farms, and diversified, climate-forward agriculture in our state.”

Food Hub Grant Program Outcomes:

Grants funded projects to enhance worker safety at Oregon food hubs and to increase food hub capacity through needed infrastructure purchases and upgrades. The definition of “food hub” was expansive for this grant pool, to include organizations doing food hub activities, even if they are not directly recognized as primarily a “food hub” (e.g. shared kitchens or multi-farm CSA programs). Funding was prioritized for BIPOC led food hubs. 

• 70 eligible applications requesting $2.6 million were received over the two years

• Of the 52 project awards for 39 food hubs: 

  • 21 out of 36 Oregon counties are represented 

  • 36 awards are for Infrastructure projects

  • 16 awards are for Worker Safety projects

  • Food hubs with leadership or staff identifying with the following:

    • 17 as BIPOC

    • 14 as single caregiver

    • 11 as trans or gender non-conforming 

    • 7 as immigrant or refugee

• Awarded projects include:

  • Refrigerated vans or box trucks for delivery between regions

  • Walk-in fridges, chest freezers, scales, reach-in coolers

  • Rolling carts, anti-fatigue mats, protective gloves, canopy for outdoor pop-ups

  • Pallet jacks, electric jacks, rackable pallets

  • Produce boxes, bulk bins, mobile shelving, storage containers

• The Food Hub Leadership Development and Technical Assistance program has launched:

  • Staff development program aimed at improving leadership skills and providing mentorship for food hub program staff

  • Needs assessment and action planning with for-profit hubs that participate in the network

  • Fractional CFO support with Annual Budget Plans

• Testimonials from awardees:

  • “This funding will allow us to more than double our shared use kitchen space and workstations, and increase our organizational capacity to not only prepare meals for those facing food insecurity, but to also offer expanded business support and training opportunities, like CSA cooking classes and kitchen and Food Safety 101 for teens.”

  • “Adding this [cargo van] vehicle to our small fleet will increase the capacity and reliability of our distribution and reduce maintenance costs and downtime while prioritizing employee safety through appropriate handles, steps, and lights”

  • “Expanded refrigeration and freezer space will allow us to carry more local product and a wider selection of products for customers. We currently carry products from 36 hyper-local producers, with plans to quadruple that figure in 2025 with other Oregon-based producers/makers. Supporting local/regional/statewide businesses on their path to creation/growing will create a stronger local, regional, and state economy in times of economic uncertainty.”