The Connecticut Department of Agricultural (hereinafter, “CT DoAg”) is pleased to announce the competitive solicitation process to award Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) funds for projects that enhance competitiveness of specialty crops in Connecticut.
Donor Name: Connecticut Department of Agriculture
State: Connecticut
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline (mm/dd/yyyy): 06/27/2022
Details:
Eligible Projects
To be eligible for a grant, the project(s) must enhance the competitiveness of U.S. specialty crops in either domestic or foreign markets.
USDA provides for individual businesses to apply for funding under this program that are not otherwise allowable under the Farm Bill funded Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.
- Marketing and promoting specialty crops
- Addressing local, regional, and national challenges confronting specialty crop producers
- Expanding availability and access to specialty crops
- Increasing child and adult nutrition knowledge and consumption of specialty crops
- Pest and disease control
- Sustainability
- Enhancing food safety
- Improving efficiency and reducing costs of distribution systems
- 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 GroupGAP) for small farmers, packers and processors
- Responding to risks and supply chain disruptions
- Implementing market adaptations related to COVID-19 for projects that benefit a variety of businesses.
- Purchasing and providing Personal Protective Equipment (PPE): Single items must not cost more than $5,000 per unit price. (e.g. one box of masks counts as a unit, not each separate mask).
- Facility adjustments as “Rearrangement and Reconversion Costs,” including installation of plexiglass barriers and other spacing adjustments to protect employees and the public from potential COVID-19 exposure.
- However, individual items should be considered supplies and must cost less than $5,000 per item.
- Vaccination costs, such as paying stipends to cover leave and travel time.
- Worker housing to protect employees from COVID-19 exposure, as a direct cost connected to the purpose of the SCBGP and the objectives of the project. This does not include construction or expansion of facilities.
Eligibility Criteria
Eligible applicants include:
- Universities/colleges
- Municipalities
- Registered nonprofits
- State agencies
- Council of Governments
- Individual businesses
- Specialty crop producers
USDA provides for individual businesses to apply for funding under this program that are not otherwise allowable under the Farm Bill funded Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.
For more information, visit Connecticut Department of Agriculture.
