WASHINGTON, D.C. — Following the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s announcement that it would terminate the Islands and Remote Areas Regional Food Business Center program, U.S. Congresswoman Kimberlyn King-Hinds is highlighting the urgent need for USDA to recommit to supporting food security and agricultural development in the Pacific territories.
“The decision to terminate the Islands and Remote Areas center eliminates the one of the only dedicated federal programs tailored to support farmers and producers in the CNMI and across the U.S. territories,” said Congresswoman King-Hinds. “We need long-term solutions that strengthen and not abandon food systems in rural and remote island communities.”
The USDA’s announcement halted more than $3 million in planned support for agriculture initiatives in the CNMI, Guam, and American Samoa. That decision came just weeks after Congresswoman King-Hinds joined a bipartisan group of congressional leaders urging USDA to maintain its commitments to the region.
In a June 26 letter to Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, King-Hinds — along with Congresswoman Jill Tokuda, D-HI, Congressman Ed Case, D-HI, Congressman Pablo Hernandez, D-PR, Congresswoman Amata Radewagen, R-AS, and Congressman James Moylan R- GU — asked the agency to clarify the status of funding and to ensure the release of resources intended to support farmers. The lawmakers stressed that the Islands and Remote Areas center was created to address the specific needs of territories where supply chain challenges, high import dependence, and food insecurity are persistent and well-documented.
“This program was not a federal handout. It was about investing in the resilience of our food systems,” said King-Hinds. “Terminating it sends the wrong message to communities that have long faced unequal access to agricultural resources and support.”
She noted that the CNMI’s farmers have limited access to federal agriculture programs, and that targeted funding through regional centers has been one of the most effective ways to close that gap.
“The USDA should be finding ways to increase investment in the territories, not pull back when implementation becomes complex,” she said. “I will continue working with my colleagues to hold the agency accountable and to ensure our producers are not left behind.”
King-Hinds is also reviewing legislative tools to reinstate the funding or establish more durable structures for supporting agriculture in the territories.
“Food security is national security. We cannot build a secure food system without federal partnership,” she said. “The USDA must be a part of the solution.”
