The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), requests applications for the 2026 Local Food Promotion Program (LFPP).
Donor Name: Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS)
State: All States
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 06/05/2026
Size of the Grant: $100,000 to $500,000
Grant Duration: 3 Years
Details:
LFPP’s purpose is to support the development, coordination, and expansion of local and regional food business enterprises that engage as intermediaries in indirect producer-to-consumer marketing to increase access to and availability of locally and regionally produced agricultural products.
The primary goals are to:
- Connect the regional food economy by bringing farmers, businesses and communities together.
- Support the development of business plans, feasibility studies, and strategies for value-added agricultural products and local and regional food system infrastructure.
- Strengthen capacity and development of regional food system development through community collaboration and expansion of mid-tier value chains.
- Improve income and job opportunities for producers and food businesses.
- Simplify the application and reporting processes for the program.
LFPP funds projects that develop, coordinate, and expand local and regional food business enterprises that engage as intermediaries in indirect producer to consumer marketing to help increase access to and availability of locally and regionally produced agricultural products. The program focuses on:
- Supporting the processing, aggregation, distribution, and storage of local and regional food products that are marketed locally or regionally, including value-added agricultural products.
- Encouraging the development of value-added agricultural products
- Assisting with business development plans and feasibility studies.
- Developing marketing strategies for producers of local food and value-added products.
- Facilitating regional food chain coordination and mid-tier value chain development.
- Promoting new business opportunities and marketing strategies to reduce on-farm food waste.
- Responding to changing technology needs in indirect producer-to-consumer marketing; and
- Covering expenses related to cost incurred in obtaining food safety certification and improvements to food safety practices and equipment.
Funding Information
Approximately $13.84 million is available to fund applications under this solicitation. In 2025, AMS funded 11.5% of eligible applications received and awarded a total of $11.1 million.
- Planning
- Minimum Award: $25,000
- Maximum Award: $100,000
- Turnkey Projects (Both Types)
- Minimum Award: $50,000
- Maximum Award: $100,000
- Implementation
- Minimum Award: $100,000
- Maximum Award: $500,000
Grant Period
- Planning: 24 months
- Turnkey Projects (Both Types): 24 months
- Implementation: 36 months
Eligibility Criteria
All applicants must be domestic entities owned, operated, and located within the 50 United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, or Tribal Governments. Eligible applicants include:
- Agricultural Business or Cooperative
- A business or member-owned entity that provides, holds, delivers, transports, offers, or sells agricultural products or services for member benefit as well as the organization or other business that they represent.
- Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) Network or Association
- Formal groups of farms that work collectively to offer consumers regular (usually weekly) deliveries of locally-grown farm products during one or more harvest season(s) often on a subscription or membership basis. This includes organizations or other businesses that assist, serve, or represent community-supported agriculture (CSA) or CSA networks.
- Economic Development Corporation
- An organization whose mission is to improve, maintain, develop, and/or market or promote a specific geographic area.
- Food Council
- A food policy council or food and farm system network that represents multiple organizations involved in the production,
processing, and consumption of food and local, Tribal, or State governments, that addresses food and farm-related issues and needs within a city, county, State, Tribal region, multicounty region, or other food system network.
- A food policy council or food and farm system network that represents multiple organizations involved in the production,
- Local Government
- Any unit of government within a State, including a county; borough; municipality; city; town; township; parish; local public authority, including any public housing agency under the United States Housing Act of 1937 , or a public transportation agency; special district; school district; intrastate district; council of governments, whether or not incorporated as a nonprofit corporation under State law; and any other agency or instrumentality of a multi-state, regional, or intra-state or local government.
- Nonprofit Corporation
- Any organization or institution, including nonprofits with State or IRS 501 (c) status and accredited institutions of higher education, where no part of the organization or institution’s net earnings of which inure to the benefit of any private shareholder or individual.
- Producer Network or Association
- A producer group or member-owned organizations or businesses that provide, offer, or sell agricultural products or services through a common distribution system for the mutual member benefit the owners, including organizations that assist, represent, or serve producers or producer networks.
- Public Benefit Corporation
- A corporation organized to construct or operate a public improvement, where the profits inure to the benefit of one or more State or to the people therein.
- Regional Farmers Market Authority
- An entity that establishes and enforces State, regional, or county policies and jurisdiction over State, regional, or county farmers markets. State agencies are eligible if their State’s regulatory statutes identify the specific State agency as a regional farmers market authority.
- Tribal Government.
- A governing body or governmental agency of any Indian Tribe, band, nation, or other organized group or community (including any native village as defined in Section 3 of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act certified by the Secretary of the Interior as eligible for the special programs and services provided through the Bureau of Indian Affairs.
For more information, visit Grants.gov.
