Window to apply for TDA agriculture infrastructure grant opens

The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) is making a total of $11.5 million available for projects that improve how food products are processed, manufactured, stored, transported and distributed throughout the state.

The grant funding comes from the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program (RFSI), a federal initiative to strengthen the nation’s food supply chain between post-harvest and when goods are sold at markets. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) earlier this year made up to $420 million in RFSI funding available to state agriculture agencies.

The TDA will offer subawards for projects that help develop more opportunities for processing food products, increase storage capacity and that implement specialized equipment, particularly cold-storage infrastructure. Projects should also improve, create or expand opportunities in underserved communities and provide fair prices, wages and job opportunities in rural communities.

The RFSI program offers two grant types:

“Infrastructure” grants offer up to $3 million to buy and install equipment and supplies, and to build and upgrade facilities. Recipients must match 50% of the funds – or 25% for qualifying entities – and complete the project within three years.
“Equipment-Only” grants provide up to $100,000 to cover equipment and shipping costs associated with food product and distribution. Recipients are not required to match the funds and have one year to complete the project.

The deadline to apply is Feb 15, 2024.

Eligible applicants include nonprofit and for-profit organizations, local and tribal governments, agricultural producers and institutions such as schools, universities and hospitals. The TDA will prioritize historically underserved or beginning farmers and ranchers, veteran producers and individually owned small business processors.

_{Strategic Partnerships, Inc.}_{can provide information on contract opportunities, plus existing and future government funding. For more information, contact}_{research@spartnerships.com}_.