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:

Category 1 – Minority serving academic institutions (e.g., 1890 and 1994 Land Grant Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions)
Category 2 – Non-profit, community-based organizations, and Eligible Tribal Entities or National Tribal organizations
Category 3 – Academic institutions and organizations (e.g., 1862 Land Grant Universities, including those that received funding under this program before January 1, 1996)

Importantly, organizations must have demonstrated expertise working with underserved, socially disadvantaged, and/or veteran farmer communities during the 3-year period preceding the submission of the application.

USDA is soliciting project proposals that address the following program mission areas, which are slightly different from last year. Proposals from eligible entities must address at least two of the five following programmatic mission areas as they develop their goals:

Assist underserved, military veteran farmers and ranchers, including beginning farmers and ranchers in owning and operating successful farms and ranches;
Improve participation among underserved or military veteran farmers and ranchers in USDA programs;
Build relationships between current and prospective farmers and ranchers who are underserved or military veterans and USDA’s local, state, regional, and National offices;
Assist in reaching current and prospective underserved farmers, ranchers, or forest landowners in a linguistically appropriate manner; and
Assist with identifying the problems and barriers that underserved farmers experience and working towards minimizing or alleviating those issues to enable their equitable participation in USDA programs.

The HFFI Planning Grant Program is a new grant program under the expanded America’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative.

A planning grant aims to transform an idea into an actionable plan and support access to the resources needed to advance towards implementation. Applicants will be expected to identify and implement planning activities that include (but are not limited to):

Assessing the community to be served
Evaluating site locations
Architectural design or other site planning
Evaluating and/or selecting a feasible business model
Establishing and training a project team and/or project lead
Solidifying community partnerships
Vetting and selecting a prospective developer, general manager, or retail operator
Development of a business plan and/or operating financials
Assessing capital funding needs
Conducting community engagement activities that will support the development of a business model that is inclusive of relevant stakeholder communities, targeted beneficiaries, and affected populations

At least $6,000,000 is available for grants for the 2024 HFFI Planning Grant Program. Grant awards will be between $10,000 – $150,000.

The program will support early stage planning and development of projects aiming to strengthen, expand, and innovate within the food retail supply chain. Applicants must demonstrate how the business model(s) they are planning will contribute to food access through the availability of Staple and Perishable Foods for retail sale.

Grant uses could include (but are not limited to):

Community Engagement: consumer/community engagement support and activities, governance support & activities, community food assessments
Business, feasibility, and operations planning/development: Information gathering and decision-making activities such as market research or personnel that will support outreach activities, feasibility studies, financial analysis, business/strategic planning, development of proformas and business financials, staff training, financial or development consultants, project management, marketing & advertisement (including online and print), etc.
Construction predevelopment: site location analysis, appraisals, architectural or design assistance, and soft costs that will indirectly support the acquisition and/or pre-construction preparation of land such as legal support, permitting, fees, and environmental/energy assessments
Other capital needs: including one-time investments into capital needs for the planning and development of a business model’s operations such as capital campaign planning, or development of technology (i.e. build out of a website) that will operationalize the next phase of the project

Grants may not be used for brick and mortar facility development.
Applications are due by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on Monday, June 17, 2024.
An informational webinar will be held for potential applicants at 2:00 PM Eastern Time on Thursday, May 16, 2024. To register for the webinar, go to: https://bit.ly/hffi-planning-grant.