Through the Specialty Crop Block Grant (SCBG) Program, Montana Department of Agriculture (MDA) seeks to enhance the marketability and competitiveness of Montana specialty crops. Grants are available to State and/or local organizations, government entities, producer associations, academia, community based organizations, and other specialty crop stakeholders are eligible to apply either as single entities or in combined efforts.
Specialty crops are defined as fruits and vegetables, peas, lentils, horticulture, and nursery crops. A list of eligible crops is available online.
No announcement has been made regarding the amount funding available for this competition however, MDA anticipates funding at an amount similar to last year’s allocation of $3,069,998.93. Proposals must request a minimum of $25,000; there is no maximum.
Proposed projects should start no earlier than September 30, 2025 and end no later than September 29, 2028.
Applicants are encouraged to develop projects in the following issue areas affecting the specialty crop industry:
- enhancing food safety;
- improving the capacity of all entities in the specialty crop distribution chain to comply with the requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act, for example, by developing “Good Agricultural Practices,” “Good Handling Practices,” “Good Manufacturing Practices,” and in cost-share arrangements for funding audits of such systems for small farmers, packers and processors;
- investing in specialty crop research, including research to focus on conservation and environmental outcomes;
- developing new and improved seed varieties and specialty crops;
- pest and disease control;
- increasing child and adult nutrition knowledge and consumption of specialty crops;
- improving efficiency and reducing costs of distribution systems and;
- sustainability.
Montana Department of Agriculture (MDA) will not award grant funds for projects that solely benefit a particular commercial product or provide a profit to a single organization, institution, or individual. In addition, recipients and subrecipients cannot use grant funds to compete unfairly with private companies that provide equivalent products or services.
Submission Deadline: February 28, 2025 by 5:00pm- in order to allow time to respond to any technical issues that may arise, it is recommended that to submit applications prior to the deadline.
To apply:
• Read the Grant Proposal Manual
• If you have any questions, call (406) 461-5520 or email scbg@mt.gov.
• Register Online for the Webgrants system. Before you will be able to submit an application, make sure that you have registered and received a username and password at funding.mt.gov
• Once you have registered online, you will start an application for the AGR Montana 2025 Specialty Crop Block Grant
Application materials:
1) Applicant Self-Assessment
2) Application Narrative Cover Sheet
3) Application Narrative
• Once your application materials are complete, upload and submit online
Topic: SCBG Tach Calls
Time: Jan 22, 2025 1:00 PM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
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Topic: SCBG Tech Call 2
Time: Feb 21, 2025 10:00 AM Mountain Time (US and Canada)
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