State Agriculture Commissioner Richard A. Ball today announced that the NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets is eligible to receive nearly $20 million through a new United States Department of Agriculture and Markets (USDA) grant opportunity. Funds through the Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program (RFSI) will be used to provide grants for infrastructure projects that expand capacity, create new markets for the state’s producers and food processors, and strengthen the New York food system.
Commissioner Ball said, “The Department is looking forward to applying to the USDA to access nearly $20 million through the agency’s Resilient Food Systems Infrastructure Program. With this funding, we would have an opportunity to make a real impact on the resilience of our food system, focusing on the middle-of-the-supply-chain specifically, to modernize and support construction of agricultural facilities, improve training, support the purchase of new equipment, and so much more. We look forward to a robust response from the agricultural community and invite everyone to provide input as we develop our application for this grant program.”
Funding from this program would support projects that expand capacity and infrastructure for the aggregation, processing, manufacturing, storing, transporting, wholesaling, or distribution of targeted local and regional agricultural products.
Eligible projects may include, but are not limited to:
Expand capacity for processing, aggregation and distribution of agricultural products to create more and better markets for producers; Modernize manufacturing, tracking, storage, and information technology systems;
Enhance worker safety through adoption of new technologies or investment in equipment or facility improvements;
Improve the capacity of entities to comply with federal, state, and local food safety requirements;
Improve operations through training opportunities;
Support construction of a new facility;
Modernize or expand an existing facility (including expansion and modifications to existing buildings and/ or construction of new buildings at existing facilities);
Construction of wastewater management structures, etc.;
Modernize processing and manufacturing equipment; and
Develop, customize, or install equipment that reduces greenhouse gas emissions, increases efficiency in water use, improves air and/or water quality, and/or meets one or more of USDA’s climate action goals.
Source: ny.gov
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Categories: New York, Government & Policy