Federal Agriculture Grants

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS), Global Programs, Agricultural Economic Development announces this competitive notice of funding opportunity to support the Technical Agricultural Assistance Program by issuing a new award(s). This opportunity is available to State cooperative institutions or other colleges and universities in the United States, as defined at 7 USC 3103. It is intended to enhance African women farmers capacity to participate in school meals value chains, through agricultural education following a Home Grown School Feeding (HGSF) program approach.

This grant provides funding to agricultural organizations and institutions to improve farm management education and expand a national financial management database for farmers across the United States.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to U.S.-based small businesses that have previously received Phase I awards to further develop and commercialize innovative research in agriculture, food systems, and environmental sustainability.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for agricultural development projects in developing countries and emerging democracies, focusing on increasing productivity and trade through the monetization of U.S. agricultural commodities.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service, Global Programs, announces this funding opportunity to support the Market Access Program by issuing new awards. This opportunity is available to nonprofit U.S. agricultural trade organizations, nonprofit state regional trade groups (SRTGs), U.S. agricultural cooperatives, and state agencies and is intended to foster expanded exports and market diversification by encouraging the development, maintenance, and expansion of diverse commercial export markets for United States agricultural commodities and products.

The United States Department of Agricultures (USDA) Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) is soliciting applications from active Food for Progress (FFPr) award recipients for additional commodity funding to be provided and incorporated within the corresponding FFPr cooperative agreement held by the Applicant. USDA/FAS maintains substantial involvement as described in the original NOFO.

This program provides funding to Hispanic-Serving Institutions to improve educational and community development initiatives in food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences, with a focus on supporting underrepresented students and enhancing workforce readiness.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service, Trade and Regulatory Capacity Building, announces this funding opportunity to support the Assisting Specialty Crop Exports Initiative. This opportunity is to promote the export of U.S. specialty crops to current and prospective foreign markets.

The USDA SBIR/STTR programs focus on transforming scientific discovery into products and services with commercial potential and/or societal benefit. Unlike fundamental research, the USDA SBIR/STTR programs support small businesses in the creation of innovative, disruptive technologies and enable the application of research advancements from conception into the market. The STTR program aims to foster technology transfer through formal cooperative R between small businesses and nonprofit research institutions.

This grant provides funding to seafood processors for expanding their capacity to process invasive wild-caught catfish, supporting rural economic development and environmental sustainability.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service, Trade Policy and Geographic Affairs, announces this funding opportunity to support the Assisting Specialty Crop Exports initiative. This opportunity is intended to promote the development of sustainable packaging of U.S. specialty crops exported to current and prospective foreign markets.

The USDA Food and Nutrition Service invites State agencies that administer the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) to apply for Direct Certification Improvement Grants to fund the costs of improving their direct certification rates with the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and other assistance programs, as allowed under Federal statute and regulations. Under this request for applications (RFA), approximately $2.3 million is available for competitive grants to NSLP State agencies with the lowest direct certification rates for children who are members of households receiving SNAP benefits to fund direct certification improvement projects. However, as discussed in more detail in Section 3 of the Request for Applications, Eligibility Information, applicants who have direct certification rates at 95 percent or higher, as reported in the latest Direct Certification in the National School Lunch Program Report to Congress, must present a compelling case in their application proposals as to why additional funds are necessary for improvements in their direct certification system or processes for them to maintain rates at or above the mandated 95 percent benchmark. The legislative authority for this grant agreement announcement is Section 749(h)(1)(A) and (C)(i) of the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2010 (Public Law 11180).

This funding opportunity provides financial support for colleges and universities to develop innovative pest management strategies that enhance food security and address environmental and health risks associated with pest control.

Federal Awarding Agency Name: U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Funding Opportunity Title: Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) Alternative Funding Arrangements (AFA) for fiscal year (FY) 2024 Funding Opportunity Number: USDA-NRCS-NHQ-RCPPAFA-24-NOFO0001355 Assistance Listing: 10.932, Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) Due Date: NRCS must receive proposals by 4:59 p.m. Eastern Time on July 2, 2024. Note: The RCPP AFA and Classic FY 2024 notices of funding opportunity (NFO) will run concurrently. For information on Classic proposals please see USDA-NRCS-NHQ-RCPP-24-NOFO0001354. The RCPP promotes the coordination of NRCS conservation activities with partners that offer valueadded contributions to expand our ability to address on-farm, watershed, and regional natural resource concerns. Through the RCPP, NRCS seeks to co-invest with partners to implement projects that provide solutions to conservation challenges thereby measurably improving the resource concerns they seek to address. RCPP promotes collaboration with partners, stakeholders, and various communities, which is paramount to achieving equity in NRCS programs and services. Using guidance contained in this notice, partners propose projects that generate conservation benefits by addressing specific natural resource concerns in a state or multistate area or by addressing one or more priority resource concerns within an NRCS-designated critical conservation area (CCA). RCPP proposals are evaluated through a competitive proposal process based on three criteria: impact, partner contributions, and partnership and management. Up to $1.5 billion is available for RCPP projects through this announcement and the FY 2024 Classic announcement, which includes $300 million of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (2018 Farm Bill) funding and $1.2 billion of Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding. Proposals will be accepted from all 50 States, the Caribbean Area (Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), and U.S. territories in the Pacific Island Areas (Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands). NRCS will prioritize using IRA funds for projects that will implement climate-smart agriculture and forestry conservation activities as described in section F.3.a. of this announcement. Up to $100 million is being made available specifically for NRCS to enter into programmatic partnership agreements with Indian tribes. This set aside will be shared by this announcement and the FY 2024 Classic announcement. Any unused funds may be available for other partnership agreements. RCPP AFAs are intended to support project structures and approaches that cannot be carried out as effectively through the RCPP Classic NFO. RCPP AFA applicants must describe the innovative nature of the conservation approach they are proposing to justify potential funding through an RCPP AFA NFO rather than an RCPP Classic NFO. Moreover, applicants should consider the additional administrative and technical assistance responsibilities that accompany receipt of an RCPP AFA award. The 2018 Farm Bill provides the following examples of project types that might be implemented through RCPP AFA: projects that use innovative approaches to leverage the Federal investment in conservation; projects that deploy a pay-for-performance conservation approach; and projects that seek large-scale infrastructure investments that generate conservation benefits for agricultural producers and nonindustrial private forest owners. Although RCPP AFA provides flexibilities to partners, these projects share the overarching focus of RCPP, which is to engage with producers and landowners to implement conservation practices, systems, and approaches on (or for the benefit of) agricultural and nonindustrial private forest lands. NRCS can make up to 15 awards through this funding opportunity through Farm Bill funding. This limit does not apply to projects funded through the Inflation Reduction Act. Submissions: Proposals must be submitted through the RCPP portal. See section E of this announcement for information on using the RCPP portal to submit proposals. Access to the RCPP portal requires a level 2 eAuthentication credential or a Login.gov credential. Obtaining a new Login.gov credential involves multiple steps and can take several days to complete. Instructions are posted on the How to Apply to RCPP web page listed below. For More Information: Applicants are expected to contact the appropriate state conservationists and state RCPP coordinators prior to submitting a proposal. NRCS will use a state conservation questionnaire to record the results of these conversations. Proposals without a completed questionnaire may have their score and ranking reduced. A list of state RCPP coordinators (as of the date of this announcements posting) is on the NRCS How to Apply to RCPP web page. Applicants can also email the RCPP inbox (rcpp@usda.gov) with any questions about the announcement. The NRCS RCPP website is also a great source of current information about the program. Interested applicants are encouraged to participate in one or more of the webinars below to learn about the program and how to apply. 2024 RCPP NFO Applicant Outreach Webinar This webinar will provide general information for applicants submitting proposals for the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). The same material will be covered at both webinars followed by a question-and-answer section. Please refer to the RCPP website for more information. Regional Conservation Partnership Program Natural Resources Conservation Service (usda.gov) April 23, 2024, RCPP Applicant Outreach Webinar Registration Link 2pm to 4pm EDT - https://events.gcc.teams.microsoft.com/event/e2f45f75-7ea4-410b-b1c9-567537cd2454@ed5b36e7-01ee-4ebc-867e-e03cfa0d4697 May 30, 2024, RCPP Applicant Outreach Webinar Registration Link 2pm to 4pm EDT - https://events.gcc.teams.microsoft.com/event/226dcb51-0b57-43b1-b340-95e535238713@ed5b36e7-01ee-4ebc-867e-e03cfa0d4697 NRCS will schedule additional webinars on RCPP easements and providing outreach to tribal applicants. Information on all webinars will be posted to the RCPP how to apply page.

Notice of Funding Opportunity Summary This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NFO) is being released prior to appropriation and/or apportionment of funds for fiscal year 2024. Enactment of additional continuing resolutions or an appropriations act may affect the availability or level of funding for this program. The Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), an agency under the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), is announcing the potential availability of funding for agreements for the purpose of leveraging NRCS resources, addressing local natural resource issues, encouraging collaboration and developing state-and-community-level conservation leadership. Proposals must be for projects based in Iowa and focus on conservation issues. Collaborative projects that provide on-the-ground support for Iowa NRCS Field Offices are highly encouraged. Research proposals will not be accepted, nor considered. NRCS anticipates that the amount available for support of this program in FY 2024 will be up to $5,000,000.00, however, budget constraints may prevent NRCS from funding 2024 proposals. Proposals are requested from City or township governments, county governments, federally recognized Native American tribal governments, state governments, nonprofits having a 501 (c)(3) status with the IRS (other than institutions of higher education), or institutions of higher education for competitive consideration of awards for projects between 2 and 5 years in duration. Awarded organizations may be required to present project updates in the form of a formal presentation to the Iowa NRCS Leadership. Organizations may use this opportunity to request additional funding for existing Iowa IPC agreements. For new users of Grants.gov, see Section D. of the full Notice of Funding Opportunity for information about steps required before submitting an application via Grants.gov. Key Dates Applicants must submit their applications via Grants.gov by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on May 7th, 2024. For technical issues with Grants.gov, contact Grants.gov Applicant Support at 1-800-518-4726 or support@grants.gov. Awarding agency staff cannot support applicants regarding Grants.gov accounts. For inquiries specific to the content of the NFO requirements, contact the federal awarding agency contact (section G of this NFO). Please limit questions to those regarding specific information contained in this NFO (such as dates, page numbers, clarification of discrepancies, etc.). Questions related to eligibility, or the merits of a specific proposal will not be addressed. The agency anticipates making selections by June 7th, 2024, and expects to execute awards by September 16, 2024. These dates are estimates and are subject to change.

This grant provides funding to U.S. organizations to help overcome barriers that hinder the export of specialty crops like fruits and vegetables, ensuring better market access for American farmers.

This program provides funding to U.S. agricultural organizations and businesses to help them develop and expand export markets for American agricultural products in emerging markets.

This funding opportunity supports research projects that improve agricultural sustainability and productivity by integrating genetics, environmental data, and advanced analytics, targeting universities, research institutions, and private organizations.

Modified release (MR) oral drug products are considered to have a high risk for alcohol dose dumping (ADD) because they contain large quantities of drug(s), designed to release over a prolonged period of time. Accidental exposure of these products to alcohol can result in the relatively rapid release of large quantities of drug with severe side effects, including death. To mitigate this risk, the FDA recommends conducting an in vitro alcohol dose dumping assessment in 0%, 5%, 20%, and 40% alcoholic dissolution media for all prospective generic versions of MR oral drug products. To date, ADD assessments have not been harmonized globally. For instance, the U.S. FDA recommends testing up to 40% alcoholic media while the European Medicines Agency recommends testing up to 20% alcoholic media. This type of difference can present a challenge for formulators designing products for multiple markets, as historical data has shown release from MR oral products do not always follow a linear response (either increasing or decreasing) to increasing alcohol concentrations. In addition, interpretation of an ADD assessment may be limited by the inability of the test to predict in vivo behavior. The purpose of this research is to develop tools that 1) facilitate the development of MR generic drug products that have a low potential for ADD, 2) support regulatory decision making during the assessment of such products, and 3) provide evidence that enables FDA to develop more specific recommendations for efficiently demonstrating a low or comparative potential of alcohol dose dumping for MR oral drug products containing high risk drugs.

NRCS is announcing the availability of Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) State Program funding to stimulate the development and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies. Applications are accepted from eligible entities (Section C) for projects carried out in the state of New York A total of up to $500,000 is available for the New York CIG competition in FY 2024. All non-Foreign, non-federal entities (NFE) and individuals are invited to apply, with the sole exception of federal agencies. Projects may be between one and three years in duration. The maximum award amount for a single award in FY 2024 is $500,000. For new users of Grants.gov, see Section D. of the full Notice of Funding Opportunity for information about steps required before submitting an application via Grants.gov. Completing all steps required to start an application can take a significant amount of time, plan accordingly. Key Dates Applicants must submit their applications via Grants.gov by 11:59 pm Eastern Time on May 10, 2024. [AF1] For technical issues with Grants.gov, contact Grants.gov Applicant Support at 1-800-518-4726 or support@grants.gov. Awarding agency staff cannot support applicants regarding Grants.gov accounts. For inquiries specific to the content of the NFO requirements, contact the federal awarding agency contact (section G of this NFO). Please limit questions to those regarding specific information contained in this NFO (such as dates, page numbers, clarification of discrepancies, etc.). Questions related to eligibility, or the merits of a specific proposal will not be addressed. Applicants are encouraged to visit the New York State CIG website to learn more about the CIG program. The agency anticipates making selections by June 10, 2024 and expects to execute awards by July 26, 2024. These dates are estimates and are subject to change.