Public Affairs
Funding is currently available for projects in Colorado, requests for applications in other states to follow
WASHINGTON, Oct. 23, 2024 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and its Northwest and Rocky Mountain Regional Food Business Center (RFBC) today announced the center’s $6.75 million Business Builder subaward program to support farm and food businesses producing in, sourcing from, and focused on local and regional markets. The funding is being distributed on a rolling basis from 2024 to 2027 through thirteen pools of competitive and non-competitive awards to serve the states of Colorado, Idaho, Oregon, Montana, Washington, and Wyoming. The Center is also announcing that Business Builder grant applications are now being accepted from farm and food businesses in Colorado.
“The Regional Food Business Centers are a cornerstone of USDA’s food system transformation efforts, serving to help farmers, ranchers, and other food businesses access the resources and technical assistance they need to access new markets,” said USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt. “The center’s Business Builder Subaward program will empower the region’s small and mid-sized farmers and food businesses to launch and expand their operations by establishing new revenue streams and gaining investors. This program is crucial to achieving the vision the Biden-Harris Administration and USDA has of a food system that fosters opportunities for regional food businesses and rural economies.”
“We have such a rich mosaic of innovative farm and food businesses across our six-state region, with so many different products getting to market in different ways,” said Lauren Gwin, Oregon State University and Northwest and Rocky Mountain Regional Food Business Center co-lead. “We’re excited to meet these businesses where they are – both in their development and in their part of the region.”
In May 2023, USDA awarded $360 million to finalists to establish 12 USDA Regional Food Business Centers including a National Intertribal Food Business Center to provide essential local and regional food systems coordination, technical assistance, and capacity building. These centers assist small and mid-sized producers and food and farm businesses with the goal of creating a more resilient, diverse, and competitive food system. The Northwest and Rocky Mountain Regional Food Business Center (RFBC), led by Colorado State University and Oregon State University, works to support farm, ranch and food businesses, as well as broader food supply chain enterprises across its six-state region.
Local and regional food systems are essential to the overall food supply chain and the Regional Food Business Centers are the cornerstone of USDA’s efforts to support them. The centers provide technical assistance to create new value chain connections, expanding supply to and demand from new and existing markets, improving viability and increasing market value of products, aiding with business and succession planning, and fostering connections at both state and national levels. The Northwest and Rocky Mountain Regional Food Business Center program provides the strategic investments needed for farm and food businesses to strengthen the viability of their businesses and overcome barriers to market access and expansion.
The Northwest and Rocky Mountain RFBC is now accepting applications for the Focus on Place funding pool in Colorado. The Center has $200,000 available in Business Builder grants for farms and food businesses located in Colorado and expects to make between 20 and 60 awards. The Request for Applications is open through Jan. 10, 2025.
The next Request for Applications for these geography-specific awards will focus on Idaho and be released later this fall. Additional pools of funding will be announced as they become available, including Focus on Topic awards that will be offered competitively and non-competitively. These awards will align with the Center’s four goals: building meat supply chain capacity; creating diverse markets for climate resilient agriculture; connecting and scaling food entrepreneurs; supporting right-size investing and infrastructure. The center will also fund regional-scale projects that will benefit individual food and farm businesses in the region, including underinvested businesses and geographic areas, across at least three of the Center’s six states.
Across the funding pools, Northwest and Rocky Mountain Regional Food Business Center will prioritize:
- Small and mid-scale farms, ranches, fish and seafood businesses, and value-added food businesses producing in, sourcing from, and focused on local and regional markets.
- Food processors, aggregators, and distributors that source locally or regionally, serve multiple small and mid-scale food and farm businesses, and focus on local or regional markets.
To apply or learn more about the Center’s future funding opportunities, including funding in other states, visit the Northwest and Rocky Mountain RFBC website.
AMS administers programs that create domestic and international marketing opportunities for U.S. producers of food, fiber, and specialty crops. AMS also provides the agriculture industry with valuable services to ensure the quality and availability of wholesome food for consumers across the country and globally. AMS services and its significant grant investments create opportunities by supporting American farmers, ranchers and businesses across the supply chain, and drive economic development in small towns and rural communities.
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USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.
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