The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (NCDA&CS) requests applications for its 2026 Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP).
Donor Name: North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
State: North Carolina
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 03/10/2026
Size of the Grant: $100,000 to $500,000
Grant Duration: 3 Years
Details:
The SCBGP assists State departments of agriculture in 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 to enhance the competitiveness of U.S. specialty crops by—
- 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.
- For such other purposes determined to be appropriate by the Secretary of Agriculture, in consultation with specialty crop stakeholders.
North Carolina Funding Priorities
- Increasing Consumption of NC Specialty Crops/Encouraging consumers to support local growers
- Specialty crop research projects: Post harvest handling and storage, labor reduction strategies, disease and pest management, soil health and nutrient management
- Sustainability and Conservation Practices.
Project Types
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) administers the SCBGP. USDA encourages projects pertaining to the following issues affecting the specialty crop industry:
- Enhancing specialty crop 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, by developing “Good Agricultural Practices,” “Good Handling Practices,” “Good Manufacturing Practices,” and in cost-share arrangements for funding audits of such systems (including USDA GroupGAP) 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
- The NCDA&CS anticipates awarding approximately $1.2 million using a competitive review process.
- The maximum grant request for 2026 can be no more than $200,000.
Grant Period
NC SCBGP grant funds will be awarded for projects of up to two (2) years and six (6) months duration. Projects will not be extended past June 30, 2029.
Eligibility Criteria
State and/or local governmental units, academia (Universities and Colleges), and non-profit organizations, including producer associations, community-based organizations and other specialty crop stakeholders are eligible to apply. Individuals and for-profit organizations (businesses) are not eligible to apply.
For more information, visit NCDACS.
