Current Funding Opportunities
February
Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund | Deadline: February 17th
Goals: The Farmer Veteran Fellowship Fund is a small grant program that provides direct assistance to veterans who are in their beginning years of farming or ranching.
Eligibility Factors: Applicant must be a member of the Farmer Veteran Coalition, have served or currently serve in any branch of the U.S. military, and have a for-profit agricultural business and a business plan.
Funding Limitations: Awards range from $1,000 to $5,000.
Anticipated Timeline: Awards announced in spring. Recipients have six months to use their awards.
SEMAP TIE Award | Deadline: February 18th
Goals: This program encourages local farmers to trial new equipment, implement farm systems they haven’t tried before, and solve problems faced on their farm. With TIE Award funding, SEMAP aims to enable our local farms to create solutions locally, and share the solutions with the region’s farming community to increase local knowledge, capacity, and resilience. Reporting requirements for successful applicants include sharing findings with fellow farmers, so as to increase our collective agricultural knowledge.
Eligibility Factors: Active farmers on land or sea in Southeastern Massachusetts (including Norfolk, Bristol and Plymouth counties) or Rhode Island may apply. For-profit and nonprofit entities may apply (note that we will be only giving out 1 TIE award to nonprofit entities). Each farm or entity may only submit one application per funding cycle.
Funding Limitations: Awards range from $500 to $3,000.
Anticipated Timeline: Awards announced end of March 2026. Recipients have until April 2027 to complete their projects and report.
Northeast SARE Farming Community Grant Program | Deadline: February 23rd
Goals: The Northeast SARE Farming Community Grant applies social science research and education projects that strengthen farming and food systems at the community level. These projects explore innovative approaches to improving the health and sustainability of agricultural communities in the Northeast. This program supports projects that are grounded in community partnerships and informed by the lived experiences of farmers. It encourages collaboration among farmers, service providers, researchers, and nonprofit organizations to co-create solutions that are responsive to local needs and scalable across the region.
Eligibility Factors: The Project Leader can be anyone who works with farmers, including personnel at: nonprofit organizations, for profit businesses (including farms) that provide agricultural consulting, veterinary services, etc., farms, farmers, farm employees and farming community groups, communities committed to building the capacity and resilience of sustainable agriculture, colleges and universities, cooperative extension, municipalities, State Departments of Agriculture, federal agencies like NRCS. Project activities must primarily take place in the Northeast region of the US.
Funding Limitations: Northeast SARE’s Administrative Council allocated approximately $3,300,000 to fund projects for this cycle of farming community grants. There is no cap on total grant requests, however, requests typically fall between $50,000 and $250,000.
Anticipated Timeline: Awards announced April - May 2026. Earliest possible project start date: June 1st, 2026. Projects must be completed by November 30th, 2028.
MARCH
MDAR Massachusetts Dairy Promotion Grant Program | Deadline: March 2nd
Goals: The Board is soliciting proposals for projects that advance the image, sales of, and demand for Massachusetts bovine dairy products. The Board is working through MDAR, which provides administrative oversight and services under the Board’s enabling legislation, to solicit proposals that meet 1 or more of the Program goals.
Eligibility Factors: Non‐profit entities duly incorporated in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts are eligible to participate in the Program.
Funding Limitations: The Board anticipates granting a total amount of up to $90,000.
Anticipated Timeline: Awards announced June 1st, 2026. Projects must be completed by June 30th, 2027.
MAY
NATOORA Farm Fund | Deadline: May 31st
Goals: The Farm Fund grants are open to farmers who are 35 and under in Australia, Europe, the U.S. and the UK who are committed to agroecological cultivation methods. Applicants should demonstrate how their project reinforces soil health, cultural & identity, biodiversity, innovation, accessible scale and education, and how a grant would reinforce the long-term resilience and impact of their work.
Eligibility Factors: Applicant must be aged 35 or younger at the time of application and based in Australia, Europe, the U.S. or the UK. Must be farming on a small scale (less than 100 acres) and proposing a horticulture project growing directly in the soil. Previous recipients are ineligible until 5 years have passed since last successful application. Projects must have a clear long term plan.
Funding Limitations: $150,000 total funding available. Grants will be awarded at $30,000, $15,000 and $8,000 levels.
Anticipated Timeline: Finalists will be contacted in late June of 2026. Awards announced October 2026.
ROLLING APPLICATIONS, NO DEADLINE
Dairy Promotion Grant for Farmers
Goals: This grant program provides funding to eligible individuals and organizations for activities that improve public perception of dairy farming and/or increase consumption of local dairy products.
Eligibility Factors: Eligible applicants include:
- Dairy farmers in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont (applicants must be associated with the production of cow’s milk)
- Retired dairy farmers or agriculture advocates, in partnership with an active dairy producer
- Agriculture organizations (FFA, Farm Bureau, 4-H, etc.) within our five state region
Funding Limitations: $2,400 in funding annually is available per farm.
Anticipated Timeline: Applications are accepted on a rolling basis. Apply at least six weeks prior to your event or activity. Applicants will be notified by email of approval or denial, as well as the total funding amount. You can expect a decision within three weeks of submitting your grant application. Approved applicants will receive funding approximately two weeks after we receive your completed grant paperwork, which includes an LOA, W9, and other documents. Projects must be completed by December 31, 2025. Grant recipients are required to submit a grant report after completion of the event or activity to remain eligible in the next calendar year.
Goals: The Black Farmers Learn educational subsidy will pay tuition or registration fees of up to $500 for Black farmers or land stewards who wish to expand their knowledge or skills via a self-identified training program. This program honors education from structured sources available to the public; this includes schools, farming institutions, land or agricultural collectives, and conferences or training that offer to deepen skills and increase farming capacity.
Eligibility Factors: This program is available to Black farmers or land stewards who are members of the Northeast Farmers of Color (NEFOC) Network and are pursuing publicly available, structured education programs.
Funding Limitations: This program will pay tuition or registration fees up to $500.
Anticipated Timeline: Applications are accepted the first week of every month.
Goals: The goal of this award is to support farmers' self-care needs. Examples include dinner with friends and family, deep tissue massage, gym or yoga membership, therapy sessions, family fun day and more.
Eligibility Factors: Farmers and ranchers operating in the contiguous United States, including all U.S. territories, have an annual farming income of $1,000 or more, and have never received a Real Farmer Care self-care award before.
Funding Limitations: Awards are $100 per applicant. Grants will be distributed via Visa/Mastercard e-gift cards.
Anticipated Timeline: Applications will be accepted and reviewed in the order in which they are received. Funds will be awarded when available and award distribution will occur in seasonal rounds. Applications submitted after the initial window or beyond fund availability will be considered for funding in future rounds.
Black Farmer Fund Rapid Response Fund
Goals: The goal of this award is to provide financial support to Black Farmers and Food Business Owners experiencing a one-time emergency.
Eligibility Factors: Black Farmers and Food Business Owners operating in the Northeast (Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont, and Rhode Island). The business must be in operation for at least one year. The business has demonstrated engagement, work and support with community members.
Funding Limitations: Up to $10,000 awards granted for general emergencies. For 2025 Funding Freeze/Cancellation emergency award maximum is $50,000.
Anticipated Timeline: Four rounds of funding available per year. See website for timeline.
