Washington D.C. area farmers are not growing enough food to feed the Washington metropolitan area, a recent report issued by Frederick County, Maryland suggests.

In recent years, national and supranational governments have issued a series of warnings regarding the need for increased local agricultural production and sustainable growth. The United Nations warns that without a significant increase in production, the global population may face severe food insecurity. The US government has committed to aid the global production efforts and has also made efforts to increase local production.

The US Department of Agriculture’s Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food campaign attempted to connect local farmers to local consumers in an effort to boost local consumption. In addition, the USDA has supported local urban agriculture efforts, offering grants and training to help local community gardens and beginning farmers.

Local production still has a long way to go in some communities. In the Washington D.C. area and the Washington metropolitan area, local farmers make only 1 percent of the food consumed. A major cause of this lack of production is government regulation and excessive costs keeping locals from entering the agriculture profession.

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Written by: Justin Ellison / Farm Plus Staff Writer