2015 Beginning Farmer and Rancher Call for Proposals

by Rick Koelsch, UNL Extension, January 15, 2015


USDA NIFA's Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program awards grants to organizations implementing programs to train beginning farmers and ranchers, including workshops, educational teams, training, and technical assistance.  The 2015 request for proposals (RFA) is now available with proposal applications due on March 13, 2015.  

Here are a few Q&A's for your information...

Where do I find additional information about the program?    If you want a short overview of the program, review the USDA news release.  The 2015 Requests for Application is your bible for a successful application and should be the starting point for anyone contemplating an application.  A webinar is planned for Wednesday, February 11 from 2 to 4 pm Eastern Time.  But don't wait until the webinar to begin assembling your team and proposal.  A more detailed set of documents and resources are found on NIFA web page. 

What has this program supported in the past?   From 2009-2012, 145 awards were made for more than $71 million through the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program. Additional information about USDA support for new farmers and ranchers is available at www.usda.gov/newfarmers. Specific information about outcome and examples of successful projects from 2010 funded projects and 2011 funded projects area available. Abstracts of all funded projects are also available.

Who is eligible to participate? The proposal is available to a broad range of public and private entities, including Extension. Partnerships are highly valued.  Extension should consider partnerships with Federal, State or tribal agencies; a community-based and nongovernmental organization; college or university (including an institution awarding an associate’s degree) or foundation maintained by a college or university.  Because 10% of the funding is targeted towards projects that reach military veterans as well as social disadvantaged audiences, partnerships that lead to reaching these audiences will have an advantage.

What types of projects will be funded?  The RFA introduces two general categories for grants: 1) Standard projects and 2) Educational Enhancement Projects.  The long-term goals of the Standard BFRDP projects are to enhance the sustainability of beginning farmers and ranchers through education, training, mentoring and outreach programs that enhance self-employment in farming, ranching and forestry opportunities.  The long-term goals of the Educational Enhancement Team (EET) projects are to identify gaps in beginning farmer and rancher training by evaluating all existing programs, and to develop and conduct train-the-trainer projects to address these gaps.

Speciality Crop Funding Opportunity

by Rick Koelsch, March 26, 2014

(North Central Region Water Network - next article below)

(Teams Forming for USDA Water Funding - scroll two articles down)

NIFA has released a call for proposals for the Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) for  2014. Do we have any proposals originating from Nebraska? Who is interested in connecting to a proposal team?

The intent of the SCRI program is to solve the needs of the various specialty crop industries.  SCRI program offers the following five project types for both research and extension projects. A letter of intent is due April 11 and full proposals will be due June 20th. A quick summary follows: 

Standard Research and Extension Project

• Project Period – Up to five years
• Budget – Federal funds not less than $250,000 per project.
• Purpose – To support targeted problem-solving efforts that would not otherwise qualify in scope for support as a Coordinated Agriculture project.

Coordinated Agricultural Projects

• Project Period – Three to five years.
• Funding range – Normally, federal funds will not exceed a total of $10,000,000.
• Purpose – To address specific multiple components of a primary system or multiple components of areas where primary systems overlap (see diagram on page 6).

Regional Partnerships for Innovation

• Project Period – Two to three years.
• Budget – Normally, federal funds will not exceed $2,000,000 per project.
• Purpose – To form partnerships that provide the local or regional infrastructure needed to fully exploit future technology commercialization and adoption.

eXtension Projects

• Project Period – Three to five years.
• Budget – Normally, federal funds will not exceed $450,000 per project.
• Purpose – To develop Communities of Practice (COPs) for the eXtension system and to support existing COPs.

   Research and Extension Planning Projects

• Project Period – One year.
• Budget – Federal funds up to $50,000 per project.
• Purpose – To provide assistance to applicants in the development of quality future SREP, RPI, or CAP proposals (grant planning).  Funds may also be requested to provide assistance to consumer, producer, or industry groups for developing strategic research and extension plans—including goals, objectives, priorities, etc. (strategic planning).  The expectation is that developed plans could provide the relevance bases for future SCRI grant applications. 

The SCRI RFA can be found at http://www.nifa.usda.gov/funding/rfas/specialty_crop.html