The Department of Small and Local Business Development (DSLBD) is accepting applications for the Food Waste Innovation Grants Program.
Donor Name: Department of Small and Local Business Development
State: District of Columbia
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline (mm/dd/yyyy): 01/31/2022
Size of the Grant: $10,000
Details:
DSLBD is following this simplified version of the Food Waste Hierarchy developed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) & US Department of Agriculture (USDA), prioritizing first prevention, then recovery, followed by recycling. ReFED, LeanPath, and the National Restaurant Association all have guides that outline options for businesses in all three areas.
Through one application, eligible food businesses can apply to receive:
- Virtual or in-person food waste assessment: This assessment can be done in-person or virtually and will provide recommendations to each business on how to reduce food waste. These will be free and available for all applicants after providing Eligibility documentation and answering Program Entry & Eligibility questions. This is not required for applying for the Food Waste Innovation Grants but is encouraged; to guarantee to complete your assessment before the Food Waste Innovation Grant deadline,
- Compost Credit: 100 businesses will be selected for $1,000 in credit for food scraps collection for composting. For many small businesses, this will cover 6 months of food scraps collection. The Food Waste Assessment will evaluate how long your $1,000 credit will cover. Applications for Compost Credit will be selected by lottery by the District of Columbia (DC or District) Ward.
- Food Waste Innovation Grants: DSLBD intends to award between 6 and 20 Food Waste Innovation Grants for a total of $300,000 for the Fiscal Year 2022. Applicants can submit the full funds required for their project, but DSLBD may award less than the amount requested. Awards larger than $10,000 will be considered for projects with 2 or more businesses collaborating.
Eligibility Criteria
The following types of organizations are eligible for this grant:
- For-profit, District-based food system businesses with 25 full-time employees (FTE) employees or fewer. Businesses that are processing, producing, or serving food or beverages. Businesses must attest to being independent and/or locally-owned, having headquarters in the District, and having the majority of operations (measured by assets, gross receipts, or employees) in the District.
- Nonprofits that will be directly managing shared infrastructure or programming for one or more businesses that meet criteria. Nonprofits will need to submit letters of support signed by each partner business including the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Employer Identification Number (EIN) and Basic Business License (BBL) for each business partner, as well as attestations by the business regarding their eligibility.
For more information, visit Food Waste Innovation Grant.
