The Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) is pleased to announce a new grant opportunity to help Oregon producers and processors access the school marketplace.
Donor Name: Oregon Department of Agriculture
State: Oregon
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 04/10/2024
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000
Grant Duration: Less than 1 Year
Details:
The Farm to School Program works to connect Oregon farmers, ranchers, seafood harvesters, and food processors with school cafeterias, early child care centers, and summer meal sites. This enables more Oregon agricultural products to be served in the lunch line. It also helps connect youth to food production through school gardens, field trips to farms and ranches, and grower visits to the classroom.
The Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) and the National Farm to School Network recognize the core elements of Farm to School.
- Education
- Procurement
- School gardens
Farm to School programs:
- serve locally grown, raised, harvested or processed foods in school cafeterias,
- improve student nutrition,
- provide agriculture, health, and nutrition education opportunities; and
- support Oregon’s agricultural economy.
Funding Information
There are $500,000 available for the ODA F2S Equipment and Infrastructure Grant Program for the 2023-2025 biennium. Applicants may request no less than $10,000 and no more than $75,000 for proposed projects.
Grant Period
The anticipated start date for the ODA Farm to School Equipment and Infrastructure Grants is May 15, 2024. All activities proposed under this grant must be completed, and all expenses incurred under the grant must be expended by December 31, 2025.
Uses of funds
Funds are intended to support businesses that will:
- Start or expand processing and aggregating capacity to sell Oregon products to schools
- Increase the use and/or processing of Oregon agricultural products
- Purchase qualifying machinery or equipment or cover costs associated with infrastructure improvements to start, upgrade or modernize value-added businesses
- Grow, harvest, gather, raise, catch, or process food and products in Oregon.
Eligible Projects
Projects must:
- Aim to increase sales of Oregon agricultural products by increasing production and/or processing capacity to meet school marketplace demand.
- Request funds greater than $10,000 and less than $75,000
- Not begin until an executed agreement is signed by all parties.
- Be completed by December 31, 2025. Awarded grants cannot be extended beyond this date.
Eligibility Criteria
Person(s) who intend to sell food produced or processed in the state of Oregon to any one or more of the following: i) school district participating in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), ii) a provider of center-based programs for children in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), or iii) an entity that provides meals through the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), or iv)Tribal Schools, Tribal Early Childhood Education (ECE)/Head Start, and other tribal youth meal programs.
To be eligible for grant funds under the program, an applicant must be a “producer.” A “producer” includes any of the following entities:
- a person who borrows, leases, rents, or owns Oregon land, whether the land is publicly-owned, privately-owned, or tribal land, on which crops are cultivated or gathered, and/or livestock is raised;
- an Oregon seafood harvester or fisherman;
- an Oregon for profit business, including Tribal Enterprises, agricultural cooperatives (such as physical food hubs), and non-profits that source not less than 51% Oregon produced product:
- whose primary function involves production, processing, packaging or distribution of food service products or some combination thereof; and/or
- produces, processes and sells Oregon agricultural products or services for the mutual benefit of members.
For more information, visit ODA.
