Funding will help businesses expand
By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack announced the USDA will be providing more than $45 million in grants to help American farmers and agribusinesses expand.
The grants are being administered through the Value-Added Producer Grant program, and about 325 projects will benefit from funding.
"Value-Added Producer Grants are one of USDA's most sought-after funding sources for veteran and beginning farmers, and rural-based businesses," Vilsack said in a release. "These grants provide a much-needed source of financing to help producers develop new product lines and increase their income, and keep that income in their communities.”
Funded projects include:
- $250,000 for Moragra PJ Farms in Poplar Grove, Illinois, to help with the handling, verification, sales, marketing and other expenses for its non-GMO corn production business.
- $75,000 for the Missouri Soybean Association to conduct a feasibility study and to develop a business plan for a farmer-owned and controlled small-medium size soybean crush and soybean oil refinery for non-GMO/high oleic soybeans.
- $250,000 for Cato Corner Farm in Colchester, Connecticut, to expand a dairy and creamery by establishing new types of cheeses, and to increase production of existing cheeses.