Grants

NEW Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center website!

The Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center offers grants and contracts for dairy farmers, processors, and service providers.

Northeast Dairy Business Innovation Center

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GOV. MCKEE, LEGISLATIVE LEADERS, DEM ANNOUNCE $700,000 PROGRAM FUNDING TO SUPPORT FOOD AND SEAFOOD BUSINESSES

October 24, 2022  “PROVIDENCE, RI – Governor Dan McKee, leaders of the Rhode Island General Assembly, and the Department of Environmental Management (DEM) announce that $700,000 in Local Agriculture and Seafood Act (LASA) programming funding is available to help new and existing food businesses grow and flourish. Enacted in 2012 to “support and develop more robust and self-sustaining agricultural and seafood sectors,” LASA is an important catalyst in strengthening the local food system. Since its enactment 10 years ago, LASA has provided more than $1.4 million through individual program grants up to $20,000. …” Read full press release.
The 2022 programming funding priorities include:

  • Supporting the entry, growth, and sustainability of small or beginning agriculture producers and fishers.
  • Supporting agriculture producers and fishers that are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color.
  • Supporting the development of new marketing, promotion, sales, and/or distribution channels.
  • Supporting the development of new products, including value-added processing capacity.
  • Fostering new cooperatives, partnerships, and/or collaborations among Rhode Island agriculture producers and fishers and supporting organizations.
  • Fostering and building capacity for markets connecting local farms and fishers with Rhode Island’s food insecure communities.
  • Protecting the future availability of agricultural land for producers, including farm transition planning and implementation, and assisting with on farm food safety improvements, including the developing of Food Safety Modernization Act and hazard analysis critical control point standards.

The Local Agriculture and Seafood Act Grant Application is CLOSED.

The LASA grant program supports Agriculture, Fisheries, Aquaculture and Forestry industries by investing in Rhode Island’s small and beginning farms. The goal is to support the growth, development, and marketing of local food and seafood in Rhode Island.

The application period has closed.

LASA Grant Program Webpage

Rhode Island Agricultural Energy Grant Program  

In partnership with the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM), the Office of Energy Resources offers a grant program specifically designed to support clean energy upgrades for Rhode Island farms.

The Agricultural Energy Grant Program provides awards of up to $20,000 for eligible energy efficiency and renewable energy projects at RI Farms. The grant program has held two rounds of funding each year since 2016. The spring 2022 round awarded a total of $115,667 to help 6 different farms install rooftop and ground mount solar projects.  

This funding helps local farmers reduce their reliance on conventional fossil fuels while eliminating the energy-intensive carbon footprint of RI’s agricultural sector. Farmers can “green” their operations through the financial and environmental benefits offered by energy efficiency upgrades and renewable energy procurement.

Funding for this program is made possible through the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. Since 2016, grants totaling over $892 thousand have supported a total of 50 projects.

Applications for the next funding round closed November 4, 2022. For access to applications and more information about the program, please visit: http://www.energy.ri.gov/policies-programs/programs-incentives/farms.php.