Washington, DC –Ohio 11th Congressional District Congresswoman Shontel Brown (OH-11) and Congresswoman Alma S. Adams, (NC-12) have introduced proposed legislation that, if passed by congress, would improve and expand the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) programs and resources for urban farmers.

The Supporting Urban and Innovative Farming Act (H.R. 5915), if passed by Congress, expands access to federal support for urban farmers, improves service delivery for urban farmers, and increases funding for the USDA's Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production.

Rep. Brown is the ranking member of the House Agriculture Subcommittee on General Farm Commodities, Risk Management and Credit and Congresswoman Adams is a senior member of the Committee on Agriculture.

"Cleveland has been a trailblazing city for urban farming. Supporting urban agriculture is good for our cities, including those I represent, increasing access to nutrition and farming resources. Urban agriculture is key to making food production more resilient, innovative, and diverse, said Rep. Brown in a statement to Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com.

"I am proud to introduce this legislation with Congresswoman Adams to build on the progress USDA has made, improve key programs, and expand grant opportunities for urban farmers," the congresswoman said. "As Congress continues work on the Farm Bill, it is imperative that urban agriculture is strengthened."

Congresswoman Alma S. Adams added that "this bill builds on the USDA Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production's success based on lessons learned since its inception. and she went on to say that "it also bolsters data collection, so we may have a better understanding of how this piece of the farm sector fits into the puzzle of ending the crisis of hunger. I am proud to introduce this bill with Congresswoman Brown."

Others who support urban farmers in America were just as elated.

"The Supporting Urban and Innovating Farming Act would put grant dollars into the hands of metropolitan farmers," said Erin Bradley, Farm and Feeding Programs coordinator at Freshlist, a food hub based in Charlotte, NC, and a member of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Food Policy Council. "The demand for agricultural production in urban areas has skyrocketed in response to the pandemic, but urban farmers often face an uphill battle with municipalities who are not set up to accommodate agriculture. "

• Clevelandurbannews.com and Kathywraycolemanonlinenewsblog.com, the most read Black digital newspaper and Black blog in Ohio and in the Midwest. Tel: (216) 659-0473. Email: editor@clevelandurbannews.com. We interviewed former president Barack Obama one-on-one when he was campaigning for president. As to the Obama interviewCLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE AT CLEVELAND URBAN NEWS.COM, OHIO'S LEADER IN BLACK DIGITAL NEWS.