ODA Awards $500,000 in Farm to School Producer Equipment & Infrastructure Grants

Oregon – Official Release: The Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) is pleased to announce the recipients of the Farm to School Producer Equipment and Infrastructure (F2S EI) Grants. The F2S EI Grant is the first state-funded grant program to help producers and processors overcome financial barriers to entering or expanding into the school marketplace.   In addition to considering representation of diverse industries and regions of the state, ODA considered applications from Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), women, federally recognized Tribes, and veterans.

ODA received approximately $1,000,000 in requested funds from 22 qualified applicants. Of the twelve projects selected for funding – most are growers who produce fresh crops or minimally processed products for school meals. One is a food business that makes culturally specific foods. ODA revised the scope of some applications to award as many projects as possible. Collectively, grantees provided more than $145,000 in matching funds towards the state’s investment.

Grant Awardees:

The goal of this competitive grant program is to provide financial resources for Oregon producers (farmers, ranchers, seafood harvesters and processors) with specific equipment and infrastructure needs, and who intend to sell food produced or processed in Oregon toany of the following food sponsors:

• A school district participating in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP);
• A provider of center-based programs for children in the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP);

• An entity that provides meals through the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP); and
• Tribal schools, Tribal Early Learning/Childhood Education sites, and other Tribal youth meal programs.