Governor Charlie Baker’s office announced $5.5 million in new grants to address food insecurity in Massachusetts.
The only grant issued in Worcester County in the latest round was $456,575 to Lilac Hedge Farm in Holden.
Lilac Hedge’s grant is to construct a packing barn and the installation of a walk-in cooler and ice machines to better deliver products at a safe temperature.
The new round of grant awards is part of the $36 million Food Security Infrastructure Grant Program created based on recommendations from the COVID-19 Command Center’s Food Security Task Force.
The goal of the Food Security Infrastructure Grant Program is to ensure that individuals and families throughout the Commonwealth have access to food, especially local food. The program also seeks to ensure that farmers, fishermen and other local food producers are better connected to a strong, resilient food system to help mitigate future food supply and distribution disruption.
