The application and guidelines for the 2022 round of Virginia’s portion of the USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant Program can be found on VDACS’ website: https://www.vdacs.virginia.gov/sales-specialty-crop-competitive-grant-program.shtml
The guidelines can be found here. Please note that the major difference between this year’s application and last is the section on Performance Measures / Outcomes.
About the Specialty Crop Block Grant
The purpose of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Specialty Crop Block Grant Program is to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops.
State agriculture agencies apply directly to the USDA for these grant funds. In an effort to reach specialty crop initiatives throughout the state, the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS) established a competitive grant process:
VDACS accepts grant proposals for the development of specialty crop projects that will support and enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops in Virginia.
Once all proposals are submitted, VDACS carefully reviews and evaluates each proposal based on the criteria in the application. All VDACS-approved projects are developed into one Virginia grant submission to the USDA.
Upon approval from USDA, VDACS notifies applicants (sub-grantees) of their status. No final awards to any sub-grantee are made until a final grant award is made to VDACS (grantor) by USDA.
Please note that all deadlines and funding are contingent upon the final U.S. Farm Bill and Notice of Funds Availability from USDA’s Agriculture Marketing Service.
The deadline to submit your application is March 21, 2022.