FY2022 Request for Applications (RFA) Now Available!
The Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Farm to School Grant Program RFA is now available through www.Grants.gov. Be sure to visit the Grant Applicants Resources page to access other helpful resources, including links to webinars that provide specific assistance on applying for a Farm to School Grant.
The solicitation officially opened October 22, 2021 and will remain open until 11:59pm ET on January 10, 2022.
USDA expects to award approximately $12 million in competitive grants to eligible entities through the Farm to School Grant Program in FY 2022. Each grant helps implement farm to school programs that increase access to local food in Child Nutrition Program (CNP) meals, connect children with agriculture for better health, and inspire youth to consider careers in agriculture. Since the program’s inception in 2013, USDA has awarded nearly $64 million through Farm to School Grants, funding 896 projects across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, and Puerto Rico, reaching over 22 million students in more than 54,000 schools.
Eligible schools, institutions operating the Child and Adult Care Food Program and Summer Food Service Program, State and local agencies, Indian Tribal Organizations, small- to medium-sized agricultural producers or groups of small- to medium-sized agricultural producers, and non-profit organizations are eligible for Farm to School grants. Priority scoring incentives return for applicants who meet certain criteria, including new priority consideration for organizations led by Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and serving BIPOC communities, and organizations located in and serving rural areas. Please see the RFA for full details.
The RFA includes three tracks—Implementation, State Agency, and Turnkey. Each track provides funding for a specific range of activities:
- The Implementation Track works well for eligible entities with prior farm to school experience, helping scale up or further develop existing farm to school initiatives
- The State Agency Track helps States seeking to improve access to local food served in eligible CNPs by incorporating local procurement and agricultural education activities.
- The Turnkey Track simplifies the application process for applicants interested in choosing from four projects: (1) Action Planning, (2) Agricultural Education Curriculum, (3) Edible Garden, and (4) Producer Focused Training. Specific eligibility varies by track and project type
Also new this year, pending Congressional appropriations action, FNS will consider proposals of up to $500,000 from State agencies and other eligible organizations proposing projects that are multi-state or national in scope. Please see the RFA for additional eligibility requirements and details for each available track and project.
The RFA can be accessed here: https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=336252
The Office of Community Food Systems will host webinars Monday, November 8th, 2021 and Tuesday, November 9th, 2021, each at 2:30pm ET, to help interested applicants learn more about the RFA and put together a grant package, respectively. A Frequently Asked Questions document will also be available through the Farm to School Grant Applicant Resources Page of the FNS website.
The Grant RFA can be found online HERE. Complete applications must be submitted on www.Grants.gov by 11:59pm ET on Monday January 10, 2022. In order to apply, applicants must obtain a DUNS number, register in the System for Award Management (SAM), and register in www.Grants.gov. Applicants are encouraged to begin this process early. For more information, please see Section 4.7 of the RFA.
Check out the OCFS resources for grant applicants and see a list of prior grantees’ project descriptions for proposal inspiration!
