FY 2026 Team Nutrition Training Grants

The Team Nutrition Training Grant: Growing Healthier Futures is a federal funding opportunity administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture through its Food and Nutrition Administration. Established under the authority of the Child Nutrition Act of 1966, the broader Team Nutrition initiative has supported child nutrition programs since 1995 by promoting evidence based nutrition education and improving the quality of meals served to children. This specific grant program is designed to strengthen the capacity of State agencies that administer Child Nutrition Programs, including the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Summer Food Service Program, and Child and Adult Care Food Program. The grant aligns with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2025 to 2030 and broader federal priorities aimed at improving child health outcomes and reducing chronic disease. The primary purpose of this funding opportunity is to enhance training, technical assistance, and nutrition education efforts delivered by State agencies. Applicants must select one of two objectives, either focusing on school meals programs or on child and adult care food program providers. Each objective requires applicants to implement activities across three sub elements, including professional training, nutrition education, and the creation of healthy food environments. The grant emphasizes improving meal quality, promoting whole and minimally processed foods, strengthening workforce capacity, and building sustainable program infrastructure. The program also encourages collaboration between states, offering additional evaluation points for partnerships that demonstrate shared benefits and innovation. Funding for this opportunity totals up to 10000000 dollars, with individual awards ranging from 500000 to 1000000 dollars over a three year period of performance. Funds are intended to support a wide range of allowable costs, including personnel salaries, training materials, travel, technology, and limited food purchases for training purposes. Restrictions apply to ensure funds are used appropriately, including prohibitions on purchasing food for reimbursable meals, large scale equipment, lobbying activities, or unrelated educational programming. While sub grants are not required, grantees may distribute funds to eligible partners such as school food authorities, nonprofit organizations, or universities to support program objectives. Eligibility for this grant is limited to State agencies that administer federal child nutrition programs within the United States and its territories. Each State may submit only one application, either independently or in partnership with another State agency. Applicants must also be in good standing with any prior Team Nutrition grants, ensuring all reporting and deliverables are current. There is no cost sharing or matching requirement, making the funding fully federally supported. However, applicants must demonstrate sufficient organizational capacity, staffing plans, and compliance with federal administrative and financial requirements. The application process requires submission through Grants.gov and includes multiple required components such as standard federal forms, a detailed project narrative, budget and budget narrative, staffing documentation, and supporting attachments. Applicants must outline their proposed activities, evaluation plan, timeline, and management structure. The evaluation process is competitive and based on criteria including project design, evaluation approach, organizational capacity, and budget justification. Bonus points may be awarded for interstate collaboration. Applications are reviewed by a panel and ranked based on scoring, with final selection determined by agency priorities. Key dates for the grant include a release date of July 1, 2026, and an application deadline of July 31, 2026 at 11:59 pm Eastern Time. Awards are anticipated to be announced in September 2026, with the grant period running from September 30, 2026 through September 30, 2029. Applicants are strongly encouraged to complete required registrations in advance, including obtaining a Unique Entity Identifier and registering in the System for Award Management. Technical assistance is available through Grants.gov support, and programmatic questions may be directed to the designated USDA grant officer. The program includes ongoing reporting requirements for awarded grantees, including quarterly financial and performance reports, participation in collaboration meetings, and submission of final deliverables at the end of the grant period. These deliverables may include training materials, evaluation findings, and success stories, which may be published by the agency to promote transparency and knowledge sharing. Overall, the grant represents a significant federal investment in strengthening child nutrition systems and improving long term health outcomes for children across the country.

Ensure alignment between project activities and selected objective clearly address all required performance measures and provide detailed budget justification aligned to allowable costs