The New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA) is accepting applications for the 2024 Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops.
Donor Name: New Jersey Department of Agriculture (NJDA)
State: New Jersey
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 03/22/2024
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000
Grant Duration: 3 Years
Details:
Purpose
- leveraging efforts to market and promote specialty crops;
- assisting producers with research and development relevant to specialty crops;
- expanding availability and access to specialty crops; and
- addressing local, regional, and national challenges confronting specialty crop producers. Specialty crops are fruits and vegetables, dried fruit, tree nuts, horticulture, and nursery crops (including floriculture). A State department of agriculture is the agency, commission, or department of a State government responsible for agriculture within the State. The term ‘State’ means the 50 States, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the District of Columbia, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Project Types
- Enhancing food safety
- Improving the capacity of all entities in the specialty crop distribution chain to comply with the requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act (21 U.S.C. Chapter 27), for example, developing “Good Agricultural Practices,” “Good Handling Practices,” “Good Manufacturing Practices,” and in cost-share arrangements for funding audits of such systems (including USDA Group GAP) for small farmers, packers and processors;
- Investing in specialty crop research, including research to focus on conservation and environmental outcomes;
- Developing new and improved seed varieties and specialty crops;
- Pest and disease control;
- Increasing child and adult nutrition knowledge and consumption of specialty crops;
- Improving efficiency and reducing costs of distribution systems; and
- Sustainability.
Funding Information
Funding for projects up to $40,000 will be available.
Award Period
3 years
Eligibility Criteria
- For the purpose of this grant program “specialty crops” are defined as vegetables, fruits including grapes for wine, nuts, horticultural products including Christmas trees, honey, herbs, potatoes, sweet corn and other specialty crops including algae. Agricultural commodities which are NOT eligible for these grant funds include, but are not limited to: feed crops, food grains, seafood, livestock, dairy and poultry products including eggs, range grasses and oilseed crops.
- To be eligible for a grant, projects must “enhance the competitiveness” of specialty crops and might include, but are not limited to: research, promotion, marketing, nutrition, trade enhancement, food safety, food security, plant health programs, education, “buy local” programs, increased consumption, increased innovation, improved efficiency and reduced costs of distribution systems, environmental concerns and conservation, product development, and developing cooperatives.
For more information, visit NJDA.
