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Rural Health Information Hub

America's Healthy Food Financing Initiative Food Access and Retail Expansion (FARE) Fund Grants

 
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: 10.872
Sponsors
Healthy Food Financing Initiative, U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA Rural Development
Deadlines
Mar 3, 2025
Contact

Anne Misak
help@investinginfood.com
215.574.5862

Purpose

The America's Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI) Food Access and Retail Expansion (FARE) Fund is offering grant funding for projects related to food retail supply chain resiliency, access to healthy foods in underserved areas, employment, and low-income community revitalization. Grants are one-time investments of capital to address barriers to entry in the food retail or food enterprise fields for rural and other areas.

Priority is given to projects that:

  • Are located in low-income communities
  • Create or retain jobs for low-income residents
  • Support regional food systems and locally grown foods
  • Are accessible by public transit
  • Involve or are owned by women and/or Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC)
  • Are located in rural areas
  • Are in areas underserved by HFFI investment
  • Are applying for a loan and need the grant to make the project viable
Eligibility

Eligible organizations include:

  • For-profit business enterprises
  • Cooperatively owned businesses
  • Tax-exempt nonprofit corporations
  • Institutions of higher education
  • State and local government and governmental agencies, authorities, commissions and food policy councils
  • Tribal governments and tribal governmental agencies, authorities, and food policy councils
Geographic coverage
Nationwide
Amount of funding

Award ceiling: $250,000
Award floor: $20,000
Estimated number of awards: 12-20
Estimated total program funding: $9,000,000

Application process

A link to the application instructions and Funding Inquiry Form is available on the program website. To begin the application process, submit a Funding Inquiry Form. Eligible applicants will receive an invitation to submit a full application.

Funding will be distributed in 3 rounds:

  • Round 1: Funding Inquiry Form is due October 14, 2024 and invited full applications are due December 12, 2024.
  • Round 2: Funding Inquiry Form is due March 3, 2025 and invited full applications are due May 1, 2025.
  • Round 3: Funding Inquiry Form is due August 4, 2025 and invited full applications are due October 2, 2025.

Applicant webinar recording

Tagged as
Capital funding · Community and economic development · Employment and unemployment · Food security and nutrition · Poverty · Racial and ethnic groups · Women

Organizations (2)



For complete information about funding programs, including your application status, please contact funders directly. Summaries are provided for your convenience only. RHIhub does not take part in application processes or monitor application status.