Agriculture Secretary Russell Redding announced PDA will open the 2021-22 PA Farm Bill’s $500,000 Urban Agriculture Grant Program. The program will provide grants to improve agriculture infrastructure in urban areas, and support for community development efforts. The Wolf Administration has invested $1 million in urban agriculture which has leveraged an additional $1 million in local investments through matching dollars. In total for the first two years, the Pennsylvania Farm Bill’s Urban Agriculture Infrastructure Program has funded 70 projects in 16 counties.
There are two types of grants available: “microgrants” and “collaboration” grants. Microgrants of up to $2,500 in matching funds can be used for one-time projects or a single entity applicant. Applicants for collaboration grants of up to $50,000 in matching funds must demonstrate cooperative or regional efforts which share resources, aggregate agricultural products or producers, promote the sharing of resources among agricultural entities, and support community development.
The 2021-22 Urban Agriculture Infrastructure Grant Program closes on October 15, 2021.