7 Farm Grants And Financing Options For Women – Forbes Advisor

Women in agriculture face unique challenges, including less access to land and capital than their male counterparts. Loans are one option when building a farm, but grants—since they require no repayment—can be an attractive alternative to traditional funding.

Grants are available to women in the farming sector, including funding for education and conference expenses, and agricultural infrastructure projects. Government programs offer some of these grants, and many nonprofits and other organizations also provide farm development funding.

1. Young Farmer Grant Program

The National Young Farmers Coalition offers the Young Farmer Grant Program. This grant supports young farmers who are building agricultural careers.

The grant program offers 75 grants, each worth $5,000, plus membership to the National Young Farmers Coalition. Recipients can use funds to cover the costs of starting, running and growing farm operations, with no additional limitations.

The organization provides at least 50% of the grants to Black, Indigenous and other people of color and 50% to female-identifying, non-binary and trans farmers—though the organization points out that these categories are not mutually exclusive.

To apply for a Young Farmer Grant, visit the National Young Farmers Coalition website. Applications for the 2023 award period closed on January 13. Refer to the site or email jay@youngfarmers.org to learn about the 2024 award period.

2. United States Department of Agriculture

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) offers several grant and loan programs that can help women farmers, but not all the programs are restricted to women. Some options available through the USDA include:

• Minorities and Women Farmers and Ranchers Loan. The Farm Service Agency (FSA) commits a portion of its Guaranteed loan funds, Direct Operating and Direct Farm Ownership loan funds, Microloan funding and Youth loans to underserved farmers and ranchers, including women. To apply for one of these loans as a Socially Disadvantaged Applicant (SDA), you must volunteer your ethnicity, race and/or gender on the loan application. Loan qualification requirements, amounts and purposes vary by program.
• Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG). This grant program is available to agricultural producers for planning activities or working capital to produce and market value-added agricultural products. Priority may be given to beginning or socially disadvantaged farmers or ranchers, small- or medium-sized farms and other groups of applicants. Planning grants max out at $75,000 and working capital grants are available up to $250,000.

3. SARE Grants

The Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Grant Program provides competitive grants for sustainable agriculture research and education projects. Supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, SARE grants are available to U.S.-based farmers, ranchers, researchers, graduate students, extension agents and other educators.

Eligible projects include on-farm renewable energy, pest and weed management, no-till and conservation tillage, pollinators and small ruminants. SARE is divided into four geographical regions—North Central, Northeast, South and West—each with its own grant opportunities.

Individual grant pages detail available amounts, eligibility and proposal requirements, and suitable project durations. For example, Northeast SARE offers the following grant programs:

• Research and Education Grant Program
• Research for Novel Approaches in Sustainable Agriculture Grant Program
• Professional Development Grant Program
• Farmer Grant Program
• Graduate Student Research Grant Program
• Partnership Grant Program

To qualify for a SARE grant, choose your geographic area and review available grants. Then, follow the instructions for each program to apply. Each grant page lists the relevant program coordinator you can contact with questions.

4. FACT Fund-a-Farmer Grant

The Food Animal Concerns Trust (FACT) provides Fund-a-Farmer Grants, which are aimed at improving farm animal welfare and supporting the expansion of humane farming practices. The organization has provided more than 600 grants since 2012, totaling more than $1.11 million.

Funds can be used for capital and operation work related to supporting those goals, and projects may include things like fencing, watering systems, access to share, cattle scratching stations and mobile animal shelters.

To apply for a FACT Fund-a-Farmer grant, find the grants portion of the FACT website under “For Farmers.” The 2024 application period opens on November 1, 2023 and closes on January 15, 2024.

5. The FruitGuys Community Fund

The FruitGuys Community Fund (TFGCF) was founded in 2012 and provides grants to U.S.-based small farms and agricultural nonprofits. Grants are available up to $5,000 and funds can be used to improve operations.

Applications are project-specific, and the organization looks for plans that will help strengthen their local community and improve sustainability—such as drip irrigation, natural pest control, soil health and energy efficiency. You must also be an agricultural nonprofit or the owner or operator of a farm or otherwise have legal access to the land where it is located. The farm must have been a small- to medium-sized working farm for at least one year before applying.

You can apply for a TFGCF grant through the organization’s website, and the application period for the 2024 grant cycle begins in January 2024.

6. Vermont Farm Women’s Fund

Offered through the University of Vermont Extension, the Vermont Farm Women’s Fund provides scholarships that awardees can use to cover the costs of registering for and attending educational conferences, courses and other classes. The grant aims to fund education related to improvements women are considering at their farms.

Scholarships are capped at $150, and the funds focus on helping women who own, operate and/or work on farms in Vermont. You can apply online up to 10 days before the event you want to attend, and you must demonstrate you earn a majority of your income from farm-related activities in Vermont.

7. American Agri-Women Foundation

The American Agri-Women Foundation (AAW) provides scholarships to young people and AAW members. Applications are available through the AAW website, including eligibility requirements and deadlines for each scholarship.

• The American Agri-Women Daughters of American Agriculture Scholarships. These scholarships are the only funds available to non-AAW members. Two $1,000 scholarships are awarded to eligible farm, ranch or agribusiness women to further their education. Wives and close relatives of farmers, ranchers and others employed in agriculture are also eligible. Funds can be used to pay for accredited and approved agriculture-related courses.
• The American Agri-Women Helen Whitmore Memorial Convention Scholarship. This scholarship aims to increase AAW involvement by helping current members attend the annual AAW Convention. Three $500 scholarships are offered each year. Similarly, the AAW offers up to three $500 American Agri-Women Gail McPherson Fly-In Scholarships to attend the annual AAW Fly-In in Washington, D.C.

  Find the Best Small Business Loans of 2023