The North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (NCDA&CS) is proud to introduce the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program (RFSI), an initiative designed to enhance the robustness and sustainability of North Carolina’s food supply chain.
Donor Name: North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services
State: North Carolina
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 06/15/2024
Size of the Grant: More than $1 million
Grant Duration: 3 Years
Details:
The purpose of the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program (RFSI) is to assist U.S. states and territories (States) to build resilience in the middle-of-the-supply-chain and strengthen local and regional food systems by creating new revenue streams for their state’s producers. States will make subawards in the form of Infrastructure Grants to middle-of-the-supply businesses to create more diverse local and regional market options and create more economic opportunities for communities, allowing them to retain more of the value chain dollar. RFSI investments aim to create a food systems infrastructure to support competitive and profitable market access for domestic farm products. States may propose that some of the funds for program management and technical assistance functions when those functions include complementary state-led supply chain coordination, in alignment with these program goals.
The program also aims to:
- Support development of value-added products available to consumers;
- Support proposals that provide fair prices, fair wages and new and safe job opportunities that keep profits in rural communities; and
- Increase diversity in processing options in terms of business model approaches, geography, and availability to underserved communities.
Funding Information
- Infrastructure Grant applicants may apply for a minimum federal award of $100,000 and a maximum award of $2 million. Projects may start on July 25, 2024, and must be completed by May 24, 2027.
- Simplified Equipment-Only Grant applicants may apply for a minimum federal award of $10,000 and a maximum award of $100,000. Projects may start on July 25, 2024, and must be completed by May 24, 2027.
Eligibility Criteria
Entities eligible for Infrastructure Grants will be:
- 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 are eligible. For-profit entities must meet the eligibility requirements of the SBA small business size standards matched to industries described in the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS). For more information on these size standards, please visit SBA’s Size Standards webpage. For a quick check on whether your business qualifies, please use the Size Standards Tool.
- Local government entities operating middle-of-the-supply-chain activities such as processing, aggregation, distribution of targeted agricultural products
- Tribal governments operating middle-of-the-supply-chain activities such as processing, aggregation, 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, distribution of targeted agricultural product.
For more information, visit NCDA&CS.
