Deadline: 16-May-22
The Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), requests applications for the fiscal year (FY) 2022 Local Food Promotion Program (LFPP).
LFPP’s purpose is to support the development, coordination, and expansion of local and regional food business enterprises to increase access to and availability of locally and regionally produced agricultural products. AMS will competitively award grants to eligible applicants for projects that meet the purpose of the grant program.
AMS encourages applications that benefit smaller farms and ranches, new and beginning farmers and ranchers, underserved producers, veteran producers, and/or underserved communities. For grants intending to serve these entities, applicants should engage and involve those beneficiaries when developing projects and applications.
Goals
The primary goals are to:
- Connect and cultivate regional food economies through public-private partnerships;
- Support the development of business plans, feasibility studies, and strategies for value-added agricultural production and local and regional food system infrastructure;
- Strengthen capacity and regional food system development through community collaboration and expansion of mid-tier value chains;
- Improve income and economic opportunities for producers and food businesses through job creation; and
- Simplify the application and the reporting processes for the grants administered under the Program.
Focus Areas
The program focuses on:
- Supporting the processing, aggregation, distribution, and storage of local and regional food products that are marketed locally or regionally, including value-added agricultural products;
- Encouraging the development of value-added agricultural products;
- Assisting with business development plans and feasibility studies;
- Developing marketing strategies for producers of local food products and value-added agricultural products in new and existing markets;
- Facilitating regional food chain coordination and mid-tier value chain development;
- Promoting new business opportunities and marketing strategies to reduce on-farm food waste;
- Responding to changing technology needs in indirect producer-to-consumer marketing; and
- Covering expenses related to cost incurred in obtaining food safety certification and improvements to food safety practices and equipment.
Funding Information
Approximately $43.5 million is available to fund applications under this solicitation. LFPP planning projects range from $25,000 to $100,000, while implementation and farm to institution projects range from $100,000 to $500,000.
Eligibility Criteria
- Small businesses
- Others
- State governments
- Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
- County governments
- For profit organizations other than small businesses
- City or township governments
- Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- Independent school districts
- Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
- Private institutions of higher education
- Special district governments
- Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities
- All applicants must be domestic entities owned, operated, and located within the 50 United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or Tribal Governments.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
For more information, visit https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=338387