The Food and Nutrition Services is seeking applications for its 2024 Farm to School Grants to increase the availability of local foods in schools and help connect students to the sources of their food through education, taste tests, school gardens, field trips, and local food sourcing for school meals.
Donor Name: Food and Nutrition Services
State: All States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 01/12/2024
Size of the Grant: $100,001 – $500,000
Grant Duration: 24 months
Details:
Grants can launch new farm to school programs or expand existing efforts. The 2024 Farm to School Grant awards projects of 24 months in length for funding up to $500,000. Applicants are required to provide matching support of at least 25 percent of the total project budget in the form of cash or in-kind contributions. The RFA offers three tracks – Implementation, State Agency, and Turnkey – to support a variety of projects and implementation stages.
The NSLA also directs the Secretary to ensure geographical diversity and equitable treatment of urban, rural, and tribal communities in the distribution of grant awards, as well as give the highest priority to funding projects that, as determined by the Secretary:
- Make local food products available on the menu of the eligible school(s);
- Serve a high proportion of children who are eligible for free or reduced price lunches;
- Incorporate experiential nutrition education activities in curriculum planning that encourage the participation of school children in farm and garden-based agricultural education activities;
- Demonstrate collaboration between eligible schools, nongovernmental and community based organizations, agricultural producer groups, and other community partners;
- Include adequate and participatory evaluation plans;
- Demonstrate the potential for long-term program sustainability; and,
- Meet any other criteria that the Secretary determines appropriate
Tracks/Key Objectives Grant funds will be made available on a competitive basis, subject to the availability of Federal funds, using five grant tracks:
- State Agency grants;
- Implementation grants;
- Turnkey – Action Planning grants;
- Turnkey – Agricultural Education grants; and
- Turnkey – Edible Garden grants.
Racial Equity Priorities
- Applications from ITOs, or an entity led and/or staffed by American Indians and Alaska Natives and serving American Indian and Alaska Native communities.
- Applications from organizations led and/or staffed by Black/African Americans and serving Black/African American communities.
- Applications from organizations led and/or staffed by people of color and serving communities of color (defined as Black/African American, American Indian, Alaskan Native, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, and/or Pacific Islander).
Organization Type Priorities
- Applications that serve a high proportion of children (at least 40 percent or more) who are eligible for free or reduced price meals.
- Applications from small- to medium-sized agricultural producers or groups of small- to medium-sized agricultural producers.
Funding Information
- Turnkey Grant – Action Plan Up to $50,000
- Turnkey Grant – Edible Garden Up to $50,000
- Turnkey Grant – Agricultural Education Up to $50,000
- Implementation Grants ($100,000 or less) $50,000 – $100,000
- Implementation Grants (greater than $100,000) $100,001 – $500,000
- State Agency Grant $50,000 – $500,000
Period of Performance
The period of performance for the FY 2024 USDA Farm to School Grant Program will be 24 months for all tracks, beginning from the date of the aw
Eligibility Criteria
The following are generally eligible entities, which are described in more detail below.
- Eligible schools, including nonprofit private and charter schools, which operate the NSLP and/or SBP;
- Eligible child care institutions, including non-school based institutions that have an agreement with the State agency to operate CACFP;
- Eligible summer sponsors, including non-school based institutions that have an agreement with the State agency to operate SFSP;
- State agencies;
- Local agencies;
- Indian Tribal Organizations;
- Agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers; and
- Non-profit entities.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
