Dear Colleagues,
The California Department of Food and Agriculture is soliciting proposals that will enhance the competitiveness of California specialty crops as well as technical reviewers to evaluate the proposals.
CDFA has developed three funding areas, with one to three categories within each area.
Concept Proposals should:
• Demonstrate a high likelihood of success.
• Be scalable to the larger community.
• Identify the specific and existing issue, problem, or need the project will address.
• Demonstrate industry need and support.
• Include an outreach component addressing how project results, research findings, and conclusions will be extended to specialty crop growers. (Note that advertising is not considered outreach to industry.) In developing the outreach component, applicants are strongly encouraged to include outreach to historically underserved and socially disadvantaged farmers.
Funding Area I - Market Enhancement: Proposals in this funding area will focus on increasing sales of California specialty crops through promotion of the unique qualities of specialty crops grown in California, developing new markets, increasing opportunities in existing markets, improving availability, and increasing demand. In addition to advertising or conducting outreach to encourage increased consumption, all SCBGP projects should include an outreach component that communicates project efforts to specialty crop stakeholders.
Funding Area II - Access, Education, and Training: Proposals in this funding area will focus on improving the competitiveness of California specialty crops through improving access to and consumption of California specialty crops, providing nutritional education for consumers in order to increase consumption, and providing training for producers and growers to equip them for current and future challenges in specialty crop agriculture. In addition to advertising or conducting outreach to encourage participants to participate in project-related activities, all SCBGP projects should include an outreach component that communicates project efforts to specialty crop stakeholders.
Funding Area III – Research: Proposals in this funding area will focus on improving the competitiveness of California specialty crops through projects that invest in specialty crop research, including research that focuses on conservation and environmental outcomes, pest and disease control, and organic and environmentally sustainable production practices. While research may be the primary objective of proposals in this funding area, all SCBGP projects should include an outreach component that communicates project efforts to specialty crop stakeholders. In developing the outreach component, applicants are strongly encouraged to include outreach to historically underserved and socially disadvantaged farmers.
Visit the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) What is a Specialty Crop website (https://www.ams.usda.gov/services/grants/scbgp/specialty-crop) for a list of eligible and ineligible commodities and a comprehensive definition of specialty crops.
CDFA Specialty Crop Block Grant Program
The complete application requirements are available at the following link: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/Specialty_Crop_Competitiveness_Grants/
Concept Proposals due: September 7, 2023 at 5PM (full proposals by invite only will be due in January 2024)
Proposal Amount: $100,000 to $500,000
Required Match: not required
Project duration: November 1, 2024 through June 30, 2027
If interested in serving as a technical reviewer instead of submitting a proposal, please see: https://www.cdfa.ca.gov/egov/press_releases/Press_Release.asp?PRnum=23-137
Thank you.
Kathleen Nolan, Director, ANR Office of Contracts & Grants (OCG)