The Kansas Department of Agriculture (KDA) is currently accepting applications for grant projects under the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) program.
Donor Name: Kansas Department of Agriculture
State: Kansas
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 07/18/2025
Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000
Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned
Details:
The Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure (RFSI) program is a federal cooperative agreement awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) to state departments of agriculture to build resilience across the middle-of-the supply-chain and strengthen local and regional food systems by creating new revenue streams for their state’s producers.
The purpose of the RFSI program is to build resilience in the middle of the food supply chain by awarding competitive grants for projects to expand capacity and infrastructure for the aggregation, processing, manufacturing, storing, transporting, wholesaling, or distribution of targeted local and regional agricultural products. This program is intended to support food system crops and products meant for human consumption excluding meat and poultry products, which are funded through other USDA programs.
RFSI program grants will fund projects that expand capacity and infrastructure for the aggregation, processing, manufacturing, storing, transporting, wholesaling, or distribution of targeted agricultural products. Examples include:
- Expanding processing capacities, including adding product types, increasing production volumes, and supporting new wholesale/retail product lines.
- Modernizing equipment through upgrades, repairs, or retooling.
- Purchase and installation of specialized equipment, such as processing components, sorting equipment, packing and labeling equipment, or delivery vehicles.
- Modernizing manufacturing, tracking, storage, and information technology systems.
- Enhancing worker safety through adoption of new technologies or investment in equipment improvements.
- Increasing packaging and labeling capacities that meet compliance requirements under applicable laws (e.g., sealing, bagging, boxing, labeling, conveying, and product moving equipment).
- Increasing storage space, including cold storage.
- Develop, customize, or install climate‐smart 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.
- Modernize equipment to ensure food safety, including associated Hazard, Analysis, and Critical Control Points (HACCP) consultation, plan development and employee training.
Grant Type
The second round of Simplified Equipment-Only Grants will range in value from a minimum award of $10,000 and a maximum award of $50,000 and do not require cost sharing or matching. Again, the Simplified Equipment-Only Grant will be a fixed price grant, meaning it will only fund equipment purchases and the amount awarded is equal to the cost of the equipment up to $50,000.
Eligibility Criteria
Entities eligible for grants under the RFSI program are:
- Agricultural producers or processors, or groups of agricultural producers and processors.
- Nonprofit organizations operating middle of the supply chain activities such as processing, aggregation, distribution of targeted agricultural products.
- For-profit entities operating middle of the supply chain activities such as processing, aggregation, or distribution of targeted agricultural products, whose activities are primarily focused for the benefit of local and regional producers, and that meet the eligibility requirements of the SBA small business size standards.
- Local government entities operating middle of the supply chain activities such as processing, aggregation, or distribution of targeted agricultural products.
- Tribal governments operating middle of the supply chain activities such as processing, aggregation, or distribution of targeted agricultural products.
- Institutions such as schools, universities, or hospitals bringing producers together to establish cooperative or shared infrastructure or invest in equipment that will benefit multiple producers middle of the supply chain activities such as processing, aggregation, or distribution of targeted agricultural product.
For more information, visit KDA.
