The Office of Food Systems Resilience (OFSR), in partnership with the Office of Grants Management (OGM), is soliciting grant applications for the County’s 2026 Community Food Assistance (CFA) Program.
Donor Name: Office of Food Systems Resilience (OFSR)
State: Maryland
County: Montgomery County (MD)
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 09/12/2025
Size of the Grant: $100,000 to $500,000
Grant Duration: 1 Year
Details:
The goal of this grant program is to provide funding to community-based organizations that supports continuity of existing critical community food assistance services, while also closing service gaps, enhancing program impact, standardizing data collection, providing greater flexibility and transparency in funding processes, and strengthening the capacity of the provider network and resilience of the local food system.
Funding Priorities
This grant program supports projects that close critical gaps in healthy food access for Montgomery County residents experiencing food insecurity. Funding will be prioritized to support proposals that demonstrate:
- Diversified food sourcing strategies to include locally produced food (food that is sourced directly from a Montgomery County based farm, a Washington Metropolitan/DMVregion farm representing underserved communities; AND/OR Food purchased from a Washington Metropolitan/DMV-region based retailer or wholesaler that sources from County or DMV region farms), culturally relevant food items, AND/OR recovered food items that prevent food waste;
- Collaboration with other Montgomery County-based service providers, including through incoming and outgoing referrals and to coordinate service offerings that avoid duplication and maximize community reach;
- Flexible service models that offer an element of choice, facilitating participant access to a variety of culturally relevant, healthy shelf-stable and fresh food items including fruits, vegetables, dairy, meat, and eggs;
- Continuity of food assistance services for residents at present levels of scale and scope;
- Leveraging additional resources to support this program, including in-kind contributions, direct organizational investment, non-county public dollars, and secured outside grant funds;
- A strong plan for data collection and program evaluation, including clear methods to track unduplicated households served, food quantities distributed, and client satisfaction;
- Engagement in opportunities for implementing operational best practices and collaborative service models, including through participation in Peer Learning Circles and trainings offered through the Montgomery County Food Council; and
- Strategies to increase access to food assistance services in underserved communities and zip-code, including considerations for improving language accessibility and cultural relevance of services provided.
Funding Information
- $3,500,000 in total funding is available for awards of direct funding to purchase and/or Manna Food Staples credits to order food for distribution, and funding to support operational expenses.
- The minimum award that applicants may request is $10,000 and maximum award is $300,000.
Grant Period
The performance period for these grant awards is anticipated to be on/about October 31, 2025 to October 31, 2026.
Target Populations
The target population served by this grant program is Montgomery County households in underserved communities that are currently experiencing or at risk of experiencing food insecurity.
Eligibility Criteria
- The organization must be a 501 (c)(3) non-profit food assistance provider based in Montgomery County that has provided regularly scheduled, no cost services to Montgomery County residents at County-based sites at least once per month for a minimum of one year. Documentation of services that align with these conditions is required for organizations that were not funded through the Office of Food Systems Resilience’s FY25 Community Food Assistance Grant Program. Organizations designated as Service Consolidation Hubs in partnership with the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services are not eligible to apply.
- All activities and expenditures funded through this grant program must:
- Be provided exclusively for Montgomery County residents;
- Be provided free of charge (this includes a prohibition on requesting donations and use of County resources for fundraising); and
- Not be provided in promotion of a particular religion, political party, etc. or with a requirement of service or program attendance.
Ineligibility
Grant funding cannot be used for:
- Gift cards;
- Capital expenses (one-time purchases of infrastructure, equipment, etc.);
- Any purchase which has already been made;
- Purchases or activities unnecessary to accomplish grant purposes as determined by Montgomery County;
- Prior obligations of and/or fines;
- Debts and penalties imposed on the grantee;
- Lobbying expenses;
- Alcoholic beverages;
- Pet food;
- Supplanting (replacing) other funds; and
- Providing services that wholly occur outside of Montgomery County.
For more information, visit OFSR.
