WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced up to $12 million in funding available to strengthen and explore new market opportunities for U.S. agricultural products and increase access to locally grown food in communities experiencing food insecurity.
The funding is available through three grant programs administered by the Agricultural Marketing Service: the Acer Access and Development Program, the Federal State Marketing Improvement Program, and the Microgrants for Food Security Program.
This year, up to $6 million is available through the Acer Access and Development Program for projects that expand consumer awareness of the maple syrup industry and provide valuable resources to maple syrup producers. The program promotes the domestic maple syrup industry by funding research and education projects related to maple syrup production, natural resource sustainability in the maple syrup industry, and the marketing of maple syrup and maple-sap products.
Through the Federal State Marketing Improvement Program, up to $1 million in grant funding is available to support projects that explore new market opportunities for U.S. food and agricultural products and to encourage research and innovation aimed at improving marketing system efficiency and performance. The program supports state departments of agriculture, state agricultural experiment stations, and other appropriate state agencies. FSMIP is authorized by the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 and funded by annual appropriations.
Up to $5 million is available through the Microgrants for Food Security Program to agricultural agencies in eligible states and territories to increase the quantity and quality of locally grown food in food insecure communities through small-scale gardening, herding, and livestock operations. The program focuses on food insecure communities in areas of the U.S. that have significant levels of food insecurity and import a significant quantity of foods. The agricultural agencies or departments competitively distribute the funds through subawards to eligible entities. The Microgrants for Food Security Program is authorized through the 2018 Farm Bill and funded by annual appropriations.
A Request for Applications for each program can be found at www.ams.usda.gov/services/grants/acer, email: SAGPgrants@usda.gov; www.ams.usda.gov/services/grants/fsmip, email: SAGPgrants@usda.gov; and www.ams.usda.gov/services/grants/mgfsp, email: IPPGrants@usda.gov.
Applications must be submitted electronically through www.grants.gov by 10:59 p.m. on the date listed in the respective RFAs. Grant applications submitted after the due date will not be considered unless the applicant provides documentation of an extenuating circumstance that prevented their timely submission of the grant application. More information is available in the AMS Late and Non-Responsive Application Policy.
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