{"id":58762,"date":"2024-05-16T17:17:27","date_gmt":"2024-05-16T21:17:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sustainableagriculture.net\/?p=58762"},"modified":"2024-05-16T17:17:29","modified_gmt":"2024-05-16T21:17:29","slug":"funding-available-to-support-underserved-farmers-a-look-at-usdas-2501-grants","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sustainableagriculture.net\/blog\/funding-available-to-support-underserved-farmers-a-look-at-usdas-2501-grants\/","title":{"rendered":"Funding Available to Support Underserved Farmers: A Look at USDA’s 2501 Grants"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Photo Credit: USDA by Preston Keres.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Last week, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced<\/a> $22.3 million in funding for 2501 grants to help organizations conduct targeted outreach and provide technical assistance to socially disadvantaged farmers.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Outreach and Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged and Veteran Farmers and Ranchers Program<\/a>, more commonly known as the \u201c2501 Program\u201d and administered by USDA\u2019s Office of Partnerships and Public Engagement (OPPE), helps to ensure that historically underserved producers have equitable access to the information, programs, and opportunities that will help them find success in agriculture. While 2501 typically has a 90-day application period, this year\u2019s window is only 60 days.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

All applications must be submitted via grants.gov<\/a> by 11:59 pm EDT on July 5, 2024.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

USDA will host two upcoming webinars to answer questions from potential grantees. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Session 1: May 22, 2024, at 2:00 pm EDT<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Web conference link \u2013 <\/a>https:\/\/www.zoomgov.com\/j\/1616233057?pwd=MFRTRklXYnFQaThxeDZ3MmwwOWlPUT09<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Session 2: June 26, 2024 at 2:00 pm EDT<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Web conference link \u2013 <\/a>https:\/\/www.zoomgov.com\/j\/1615399036?pwd=NkdUN2VIdUNwenFGZENrc1laTVo2UT09<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Program Background<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Farmers of color have not historically benefitted from vital USDA safety net programs to the same extent as their white counterparts, often due to overt discrimination, limited resources, and USDA\u2019s inadequate outreach to these communities. Farmers of color more commonly face unique and difficult challenges to starting and managing a successful farming operation, limiting the opportunity to have viable and resilient careers in farming.\u00a0 This disparity disadvantages farmers of color in both the national and global economy and stifles the growth and prosperity of rural communities. Rising costs and limited availability of farmland, access to markets and infrastructure, discrimination, and the worsening impacts of the climate crisis and natural disasters are just some of the challenges these farmers face. In an effort to support the operations of historically underserved farmers (known collectively as \u201csocially disadvantaged farmers<\/a>\u201d in statute), the 1990 Farm Bill authorized the 2501 Program, which the 2014 Farm Bill expanded to include veterans in what is now the Outreach and Assistance for Socially Disadvantaged and Veteran Farmers and Ranchers Program.<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The 2018 Farm Bill combined the 2501 program with the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program<\/a> (BFRDP) into a new umbrella program: the Farming Opportunities Training and Outreach<\/a> (FOTO) program. Congress mandates that FOTO funds be divided equally between Section 2501 and BFRDP, with each program to receive $25 million in mandatory funding for Fiscal Year (FY) 2023. FOTO received an additional $75 million from the Emergency Coronavirus Relief Act of 2020<\/a> in December 2020, and these additional funds were meant to be dispersed over the next few years. In FY22, 52 organizations were awarded 2501 grants, almost double the amount of awards granted in FY21 as a result of the additional investment from COVID relief funds. However, President Joe Biden and former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy\u2019s (R-CA-20) deal intended to avoid a default on <\/strong>the United States\u2019 debt<\/a>, now known as the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023, H.R. 3746<\/a>, rescinded all unobligated funds from the $75 million appropriated to FOTO, resulting in less funding and fewer grantees for FY23 than originally expected.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Program Eligibility<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Organizations can apply for a maximum amount of $250,000 for a single year, with a grant maximum of $750,000 over a 3-year period. There is no match required for applications and only one project proposal may be submitted per eligible entity. Grant funding will be awarded to three categories of applicants:<\/p>\n\n\n\n