Houston FSA Urban County Committee Takes Office

Contact:
Joshua.Coleman@usda.gov

Houston Joins Dallas and 25 Other Urban County FSA Committees Across the Country

HOUSTON, May 10, 2024 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) in Houston announced that Aaron Haddock of Cypress, A.J. Beard of Timber Grove, and Noah Rattler of Sunnyside, were elected to represent their Local Administrative Areas (LAA) during the recent urban county committee election.

Billy Trainor of Acres Home will serve as the first alternate for LAA 2.

"County Committee members are a critical component of the day-to-day operations of FSA,” said Kay Wolfe, county executive director. "They help deliver programs at the county level and work to serve the needs of local producers. All recently elected urban county committee members took office on April 29, 2024.”

Organized under USDA’s Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production, the new Houston committee along with committees in 26 other cities, are part of a broader effort directed by the 2018 Farm Bill for USDA to enhance support for urban agriculture.

Committees weigh in on important decisions about how federal farm programs are administered locally. Their input is vital to how FSA carries out disaster programs, as well as conservation, commodity and price support programs, county office employment, and other agricultural issues.

The urban and suburban county committees will work to encourage and promote urban, indoor and other emerging agricultural production practices. Additionally, the new county committees may address areas such as food access, community engagement, support of local activities to promote, and encourage community compost and food waste reduction.

More Information

The 2018 Farm Bill directed USDA to form the urban county committees as well as make other advancements related to urban agriculture. The Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production was established through the 2018 Farm Bill. It is led by the Natural Resources Conservation Service and works in partnership with numerous USDA agencies that support urban agriculture. Its mission is to encourage and promote urban, indoor, and other emerging agricultural practices, including community composting and food waste reduction. More information is available at usda.gov/urban.

For additional resources available to producers, download the Urban Agriculture at a Glance brochure or visit farmers.gov/urban.

USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. Under the Biden-Harris administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit usda.gov.