Headline: UPDATE: USDA cancels LFPA25 funding, will honor LFPA and LFPA+ agreements
March 8, 2025
After initially announcing it was accepting applications for the latest round of Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA) in early 2025, USDA updated its guidance and is cancelling the next round of the program, called LFPA25.
USDA is unfreezing funds for existing agreements but did not plan to carry out a second round of funding for fiscal year 2025.
In a statement released to the media, USDA said of the decision, “These programs, created under the former Administration via Executive authority, no longer effectuate the goals of the agency. LFPA and LFPA Plus agreements that were in place prior to LFPA 25, which still have substantial financial resources remaining, will continue to be in effect for the remainder of the period of performance.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service (USDA-AMS) announced a new funding opportunity through the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA). The program provides funding for states, Tribes, or territories to purchase locally-sourced foods
For those who have used previous iterations of the program, LFPA25 is like LFPA and LFPA+ but is extended through this year, with applications due April 30, 2025.
“We have seen Tribes use the LFPA program to support their local farmers and ranchers,” said Indigenous Food and Agriculture Initiative (IFAI) Tribal Outreach Specialist, Kaycee Captain (Eastern Shawnee). “Buying locally to feed locally — Tribes we have spoken with see it as a positive.”
What is LFPA?
Created as a way to encourage local procurement during the height of the pandemic, LFPA aims to build resiliency to the food and agricultural supply chains.
For Tribes, they are funded to buy food produced within 400 miles of the delivery destination. With this purchase power, governmental entities can purchase local and regional food that is more relevant, healthy, and nutritious to a population needs.
More than 90 Tribes nationwide have participated in at least one round of the program, though the 400-mile limit has created challenges for Tribes abutting international borders or located in remote locations.
Are Tribes eligible?
For federally-recognized Tribal governments, departments responsible for agriculture, food procurement, food distribution, emergency response, or similar activities, are eligible.
While AMS will only make one award per State or territory, Tribal governments do not count towards that, and additional awards will be made to Tribal governments.
How can the funding be used?
The LFPA program is strict with regard to what can be purchased. It only allows for unprocessed or minimally-processed food. Food storage and distribution costs are the only additional uses the funds can be used for.
The first two rounds of the program — LFPA and LFPA+ — accounted for more than $128 million in food purchases by Tribal governments alone.