[WENATCHEE, WASHINGTON, May 21, 2024] The USDA Foreign Agricultural Service announced the new Regional Agricultural Promotion Program, or RAPP, in November of 2023. RAPP is meant to expand and develop market opportunities for U.S. food and agricultural products and help create trade possibilities around the world where consumer demand is growing, focusing on regions such as Africa, Latin America, and South and Southeast Asia. This is excellent news for all commodity groups, who have been working to increase Market Access Program (MAP) funding, which is provided through the Farm Bill and has remained stagnant at $200 million for more than 15 years.
Agriculture Secretary, Tom Vilsack, authorized $1.2 billion in funding from the Commodity Credit Corporation. The program includes multi-year funding spread over 5 tranches, with $300 million allocated to the first tranche. Vilsack said, “By enabling U.S. exporters to expand their footprint in diverse and dynamic new markets, RAPP will help make them more competitive and resilient in an increasingly volatile global trading environment.”
Supporting 66 agriculture commodity groups, the new funding pool was oversubscribed at more than $1 billion in requests for the first tranche alone. The Washington Apple Commission was awarded $7 million in the first tranche of the RAPP program, which will be used over a 5-year period, helping to increase brand awareness and consumer loyalty for Washington apples in international markets.
The Washington Apple Commission would like to commend the USDA and Foreign Agricultural service, along with our congressional leaders for their support and efforts to bring this program to life. “The RAPP funds come at an excellent time,” states Todd Fryhover, president of the Washington Apple Commission. “With so many new apple varieties and increased production, it’s important we support continued international expansion through innovative programs benefiting our growers, and these RAPP dollars will help take us to the next level. The Commission is very excited about the $7 million allocation and would like to thank everyone involved for getting the program running so quickly.”
The new RAPP funds will allow the Washington Apple Commission to build on the success of the marketing strategies put into place by the Market Access Program (MAP) funding and add to the $5,409,614 MAP award allocation for the 2024/25 season. Funding from the MAP program has been essential to the success of the Washington Apple Commission over the years. The introduction of the RAPP funding will help provide additional opportunities to promote Washington apples in new and even more exciting ways.
The Washington Apple Commission is a non-profit, promotional organization dedicated to marketing and advertising fresh Washington apples internationally. For more information on the Washington Apple Commission, visit www.waapple.org.
The Washington Apple Commission is an equal opportunity provider and employer.