Hukama Produce, a small farm in Ramona, California, is dealing with challenges due to tariffs and funding cuts that threaten its operations. Owner Byron Nkhoma is compelled to apply for more grants as consumer spending declines and his primary clientsâthe San Diego food banksâface financial constraints. With the recent cutting of federal support programs intended to help local food sources and combat hunger, such programs were vital for the farm's stability, now jeopardizing the business's future amid escalating costs and dwindling market support.
I don't think small farms have the financial muscle to wait for years for maybe a turnaround for a better economy, he said, adding that the double impact, at the same time, of tariffs and funding cuts is totally crippling to small farmers.
Consumer spending at farmers markets was already down, Nkhoma said. Then he learned that his biggest clients â two San Diego food banks that account for 60% of his farm's business â are facing funding cuts.
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