Grants Advising for Socially Disadvantaged Farmers

If you are a farmer who is a member of a historically socially disadvantaged group*, you are invited to use a grants advising service of the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute (MFAI).

MFAI’s GrantAdvisor can help you apply to grant and cost-share programs of your state or the federal government that could help you improve your farming business. These can be programs of any federal or state agency, not just the USDA. We will assist individual producers or associations of farmers who have never received a federal grant or cost-share before. We will also work with young nonprofits that are working directly with socially disadvantaged farmers to start or improve food-related businesses. We will also assist those working with disadvantaged youth involved in food or fiber production.

The Grants Advisor helps you decide whether a grant would be the best way to achieve your goals. If so, she will help you choose a grant program that fits your goals and help you outline a plan of work for you to follow to meet the application deadline and all proposal or application requirements. If not, she will suggest other resources you may choose to approach. The Advisor will help you identify local partners (agency staff, nonprofit organizations, or local volunteers with experience in grants and project management) to strengthen your project, to help you complete the proposal, and, if funding is awarded, to manage the project. The Advisor can assist you in preparing the proposal to ensure timely submission with necessary forms, attachments, and letters of support.

Most grant program deadlines are during the winter months, so please act now. Even for deadlines next fall or winter, it is best to start working now with the Grants Advisor. You can get your plan of work organized so that the next deadline does not sneak up on you. MFAI funds for this service are limited, so the sooner you contact the Grants Advisor, the greater the chance that you can use this service to advance your project or those you know who would qualify.

For more information please contact the Grants Advisor, Deirdre Birmingham, at (608) 219-4279.

This project is funded by Farm Aid.

* For purposes of this project, MFAI uses the USDA Risk Management Agency’s definition: “A socially disadvantaged (SDA) farmer, rancher, or agricultural producer is one of a group whose members have been subjected to racial, ethnic, or gender prejudice because of his or her identity as a member of the group without regard to his or her individual qualities. SDA groups are women, African Americans, American Indians, Alaskan Natives, Hispanics, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.”

While MFAI will consider the application of other producers, the funders of this project set a priority on serving socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers.