Purpose: |
The Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act (NSLA) establishes a Farm to School Program in order to assist eligible entities, through grants and technical assistance, in implementing farm to school programs that improve access to local foods in eligible schools. To fulfill the farm to school mandate in the NSLA, $5 million is provided to the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on an annual basis to support grants, technical assistance, and the Federal administrative costs related to USDA’s Farm to School Program. The USDA Farm to School Grant Program is housed within the Food and Nutrition Services’ (FNS) Office of Community Food Systems (OCFS). Additional funding for the Farm to School Grant Program was made available through the FY 18 Omnibus bill, and as a result, up to $7.5 million will be released under this solicitation. |
Receipt Date: |
Expires: December 4, 2018 |
Total Awards: |
105 awards |
Eligibility: |
The authorizing language specifies the following eligible entities: • Eligible schools; • State and local agencies; • Indian tribal organizations; • Agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers; and • Non-profit entities. Eligible schools are defined as pre-K-12 School Food Authorities (SFAs), non-profit private schools, charter schools, Indian tribal schools, and others that participate in the National School Lunch or Breakfast Programs. Eligible SFAs may apply for funding that spans the entire SFA, for a specific group of schools (e.g. only K-5 schools within an SFA), or for an individual school. In the case where an SFA exists, the application must come from the SFA, and only one application per SFA is allowed. F2S Planning & Training: Eligible schools, state and local agencies, Indian tribal organizations, agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers, and non-profit entities are eligible to receive planning and implementation grants. Funding is available to support school-based programs only. If a proposal seeks to increase local foods in the Child and Adult Care Program or the Summer Food Service Program, target sites must be located at an eligible school. If a proposal seeks to target school(s), schools discussed in the project proposal as benefiting from the project must be eligible as defined in section 3.0. Training Grant Eligibility: Only state and local agencies, Indian Tribal Organizations, agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers, and non-profit entities are eligible to receive training grant funds. Unlike planning and implementation grants, training grants may support projects that impact CACFP and SFSP operators that have sites beyond schools. Please review section 3.0 for additional eligibility requirements before proceeding with preparing an application |
Link: | https://bit.ly/2O6nNAo |