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WSDA announces availability of $3 million in specialty crop grants

Pre-Proposals due Jan. 31, 2011

OLYMPIA — The Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) announced today that federal grants will be available to enhance the state’s fruit, vegetable and nursery industry. The U.S. Department of Agriculture will be providing more than $3 million to Washington through its Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP), authorized by the federal 2008 Farm Bill.

Private and non-profit organizations, commodity commissions and other public entities may request funds for projects of $75,000 to $250,000 that benefit the competitiveness of fruit, vegetable, nursery and turfgrass producers. In addition, WSDA will set-aside a portion of funds for small projects of $10,000 to $74,999. All projects must be completed within three years.

The first step in applying for grant funding is to submit a brief pre-proposal to WSDA. The submittal should be e-mailed to Rianne Perry, WSDA grant coordinator, at specialtycrop@agr.wa.gov.

The pre-proposals will be reviewed by WSDA and specialty crop industry stakeholders. Successful applicants will be asked to submit full proposals for further review. Application information and forms are available on WSDA’s website at http://agr.wa.gov/grants/. For more information on the program, lists of eligible products and the federal requirements, go to the USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service at www.ams.usda.gov/scbgp or contact WSDA’s Rianne Perry at (360) 902-2177.

Based on recent feedback from Washington’s specialty crop industries, WSDA is seeking projects that focus on controlling pests and diseases, improving food safety, promoting international trade, protecting key resources, enhanced in-state trade, and reduced regulatory barriers. Projects that benefit Washington’s specialty crop producers in other ways are also encouraged. Each project must demonstrate measurable benefits for the specialty crop industry and must not assist just a single producer or company. Projects that benefit Washington in addition to other states are encouraged, as are projects that benefit new farmers or socially disadvantaged farmers. Matching funds are not required but are strongly encouraged.

Washington is the third leading producer of specialty crops in the nation, which includes being the number one grower of apples, cherries, raspberries, hops, spearmint and many other commodities. This past September, WSDA announced the distribution of $3.4 million to fund 27 projects that will benefit the state’s diverse specialty crop industry. The list may be viewed at http://agr.wa.gov/grants/docs/2010AwardAbstracts.pdf.

Timeline for WSDA's 2011 grant competition includes:

• Pre-Proposals are due to WSDA by 4 p.m. Jan. 31, 2011.
• WSDA will review pre-proposals and invite full proposals by March 21.
• Complete grant proposals are due to WSDA on April 22.
• WSDA will select and submit the winning proposals to USDA by July 29.
• USDA will announce their awards in late September and WSDA grant agreements will be issued by November 2011.
• WSDA will offer unsuccessful applicants the opportunity to request feedback on their proposals.

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