The goal of the Farmer Grants program is to develop, refine, and demonstrate new sustainable techniques and to explore innovative ideas developed by farmers across the region. Farmer grants projects should seek new knowledge that other farmers can use and should address questions that are directly linked to improved profits, better stewardship, and stronger rural communities.
Eligible Recipients:
Applicant must be a farmer in the Northeast SARE region. Applicant need not be farming full time, but the operation should have an established crop or animal product that is sold on a regular basis. Institutional and incorporated farms may apply, but the primary activity of that farm must be to produce and sell food under the kinds of economic constraints that affect commercial growers.
Eligible Projects:
Farmer Grants funds can be used to explore new marketing and production techniques, pest management, cover crops, composting, agroforestry, new crop trials, bee health and alternative pollinators, new tool development, and a very broad range of other topics that improve profitability, stewardship, and the rural community. Projects must test a genuinely new idea, offer a new twist on an old one, and show evidence of careful planning. Funds can be used to pay farmers for their time, for project-related materials, for project costs like consulting fees or soil tests, and for any communications or outreach expenses associated with telling others about project results.
Funding Source:
Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NE SARE)
Funding Amount:
Up to $15,000
Deadline:
Recurring
Contact:
Northeast SARE
655 Spear St.
University of Vermont
Burlington, VT 05405
802-656-0471
www.nesare.org
More Information:
www.nesare.org/Grants/Get-a-Grant/Farmer-Grant