Food Safety Outreach Competitive Grants Program | USDA NIFA FSMA 008138

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NIFA FSMA 008138

The Food Safety Outreach Competitive Grants Program is a discretionary grant opportunity administered by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under CFDA 10.328 (Funding Opportunity Number: USDA NIFA FSMA 008138). Its main purpose is to strengthen and expand the national capacity for food safety training and technical support by building on the broader National Food Safety Training, Education, Extension, Outreach, and Technical Assistance Competitive Grants Program infrastructure. In practical terms, the program is designed to move food safety knowledge into real-world use by funding projects that deliver hands-on, customized education and assistance to people who most need it and may have fewer resources to access it on their own.

The program focuses heavily on targeted, community-connected delivery. Funded projects are expected to develop and implement training, education, extension, outreach, and technical assistance that directly addresses the day-to-day food safety needs of specific audiences: owners and operators of small to mid-sized farms, beginning farmers, socially disadvantaged farmers, small food processors, and small fresh fruit and vegetable merchant wholesalers. The emphasis on customization means applicants should not propose generic, one-size-fits-all workshops; instead, projects should be tailored to the realities of local operations, markets, and capacity, helping these businesses and farms understand and apply appropriate food safety practices in ways that fit their scale and context.

A defining feature of this opportunity is that it actively seeks proposals rooted in local communities. NIFA anticipates applications coming from organizations that already have trusted relationships with the target audiences, such as community-based organizations, non-governmental organizations, food hubs, farm cooperatives, Cooperative Extension, and similar local or regional groups. This community orientation signals that successful projects will likely be those that can demonstrate both technical competence in food safety and a credible plan for reaching producers and small businesses where they are, including underserved groups, and supporting adoption of improved practices over time rather than through one-off events.

Eligibility is broad but specific. An applicant must qualify under at least one of these categories: a Cooperative Extension Service for a US state or territory; a non-governmental or community-based organization representing owners and operators of farms, small processors, or small produce merchant wholesalers with a commitment to public health and demonstrated expertise administering programs that contribute to food safety; a federal, state, local, or tribal agency; an institution of higher education (as defined by the Higher Education Act of 1965) or a foundation maintained by such an institution; or a collaboration of two or more eligible entities. Collaboration is explicitly allowed, which creates room for strong partnerships that combine food safety expertise (for example, Extension or a university) with trusted community access (for example, a cooperative, food hub, or community-based nonprofit).

From an application compliance standpoint, the announcement stresses that applicants must meet all requirements in the request for applications (RFA) by the deadline. If eligibility is not met by the application deadline, the proposal may be excluded or NIFA may be unable to make an award. The notice also highlights a strict rule against duplicate or multiple submissions: if an applicant submits more than one application (or duplicates), NIFA will disqualify both. For organizations newer to federal funding, NIFA points applicants to its Grants Overview resources to better understand federal financial assistance expectations and processes.

Key administrative details provided include an application closing date of April 1, 2021, and an award ceiling of up to $1,000,000. The opportunity is categorized under agriculture and uses the grant funding instrument type. Overall, the program is best understood as a capacity-building and implementation-focused food safety funding stream that prioritizes practical training and technical assistance delivered through community-connected organizations to small and historically underserved segments of the food and farming sector.

• The National Institute of Food and Agriculture in the agriculture sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Food Safety Outreach Competitive Grants Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.328.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-01-18.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2021-04-01. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,000,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for USDA NIFA FSMA 008138

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