Wednesday, December 2, 2015

Federal grants available for multi-state specialty crop projects

WSDA specialty crop grant administrator

The federal Specialty Crop Multi-State Program (SCMP) competitively awards grant funds to state agriculture departments to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops. Washington state is the nation’s second-largest grower of specialty crops such as fruits, vegetables, horticulture and nursery crops.

SCMP is a program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). It funds collaborative, multi-state projects that address these regional or national specialty crop issues:
  • Food safety
  • Plant pests and disease
  • Research
  • Crop-specific projects addressing common issues
  • Marketing and promotion

 Washington is one of 18 states accepting applications from industry organizations, associations, or other state departments for these grants. All SCMP proposals must have at least two partners substantially involved in the project, and partners must be located in different states.

How to apply

If you have a project to propose for funding, submit an application by the deadline of 8:59 p.m. (PST), Dec. 15, 2015, to:  SCMP@agr.wa.gov.  Be sure to follow the submittal guidelines in USDA’s Request for Applications and additional applicant guidance, which can be found on the SCMP How to Apply page.  

WSDA will screen proposals to make sure they’re complete and meet requirements, and then submit applications to USDA for consideration.

For more information about this grant funding opportunity: