The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), requests applications for the 2023 Local Meat Capacity Grants (Local MCap).
Donor Name: Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
State: All States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 07/19/2023
Size of the Grant: $5,000,000
Grant Duration: 36 months
Details:
Purpose
The purpose of this program is to build resilience in the meat and poultry supply chain by increasing processing capacity and promoting more competition in the sector. This program is part of the broader Biden-Harris Administration $1 billion investment to expand processing capacity for small and midsized meat and poultry processors. Given that the meat and poultry processing sector is particularly vulnerable to disruption, increasing capacity and promoting competition is a high priority for USDA. Based on public input, USDA identified an urgent need to expand and diversify meat and poultry processing capacity; increase producer income; provide producers an opportunity to have ownership in processing facilities; create stable, well-paying jobs in rural regions; improve worker health, safety, training, and wages for meatpacking jobs; spur collaboration among producers and workers; prompt State, Tribal, and private co-investment; and provide consumers with more choices.
This Local MCap grant program is targeted to support meat and poultry processors with smaller-scale projects, with a goal to increase processing availability and variety for local livestock producers. Given that byproducts (e.g., meat and bone meal, poultry meal, blood meal, animal fats, etc.) are generated through the slaughter and processing of livestock and, therefore, an essential part of a holistic processing supply chain, rendering plants who can demonstrate how they meet the overarching goals of this program are also eligible to apply.
Types of Projects
- Processing Expansion Projects will fund grants from $100,000 up to $5 million to increase the processing and/or rendering capacity of privately, cooperatively, non-profit, or Tribally held processing facilities as described in this RFA. Applications in this project type may request funding for equipment only projects over $250,000 or projects that include equipment purchases and facilities upgrades that create new and/or expanded markets for local livestock producers. For funding requests that include building and facility upgrades, those can include improvements, re-arrangements, and/or alterations to a facility that are required to use a space more effectively and to accommodate new or upgraded equipment and processes.
- Examples of activities and initiatives that can be funded by this program include but are not limited to:
- Expanding processing capacities to increase production volumes, process additional meat and poultry species, or add new value-added product types;
- Upgrading processing and manufacturing equipment;
- Increasing packaging and labeling capacity;
- Increasing cold storage capacity;
- Improving slaughter and humane handling infrastructure;
- Installation of holding pens or wastewater management systems, or other improvements that do not require breaking new ground or constructing new facilities;
- Purchasing equipment or upgrading facilities for rendering carcasses and animal byproducts;
- Minor facility alterations and repairs and equipment purchases for new or improved on-premise retail space;
- Developing, customizing or installing equipment that reduces greenhouse gas emissions, increases efficiency in water use, improves air and/or water quality, and/or meets one or more of USDA’s climate action goals
- Purchase or upgrade equipment to improve worker safety;
- Modernize equipment or facilities to ensure food safety;
- Hiring consultants to develop Hazard, Analysis, and Critical Control Points (HACCP) plans or to develop and provide employee training;
- Training on the use of all equipment purchased under the grant and associated new processes;
- Staffing or operational costs specifically tied to the proposed expansion project.
- Simplified Equipment-Only Projects offer a simplified application to fund smaller grants between $10,000 and $250,000 for equipment purchases for meat and poultry processors. The Simplified Equipment-Only option is a Fixed Price Grant, meaning it will fund only equipment purchases (and not associated facility upgrades, staffing, or other costs), and the amount awarded will be equal to the cost of the equipment up to $250,000. Applicants must attach documentation to substantiate the costs of each piece of proposed equipment, which can include contracts, catalog pricing or binding quotes provided by license commercial entities. No match is required for this grant.
Funding Priorities
AMS will prioritize applications that demonstrate engagement with and benefit to local livestock producers, including underserved producers.
AMS may prioritize applications based on:
- Diversity in applicants funded in geographic regions and across a variety of species.
- For Processing Expansion Projects: Leverage of significant non-Federal financial and technical resources, as appropriate to the scope and scale of the project. Any match above and beyond the match requirement may lend support to the application.
- Size of the operation according to number of head processed annually or number of employees. Applicants should provide this information as part of their project narrative.
- Whether the projects:
- Are located in communities that have distressed or at-risk scores on the Distressed Communities Index (DCI) developed by the Economic Innovation Group.
- Enhance worker and/or farmer voice through cooperative ownership, payment of living wages, the provision of worker training, and/or promotion of safe working conditions.
- Enhance local and regional environmental stewardship and climate benefits.
Funding Information
- Estimated Total Program Funding: $75,000,000
- Processing Expansion Projects
- Grant Amount: $100,000 – $5,000,000
- Period of Performance: 36 months
- Simplified Equipment-Only Projects
- Grant Amount: $10,000 – $250,000
- Period of Performance: 24 months
Eligibility Criteria
- City or township governments
- Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
- Small businesses
- Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- For profit organizations other than small businesses
- State governments
- Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
- County governments.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
