WAYLAND, Iowa — With a renewed emphasis on small meat processors and local foods, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) currently has several grant opportunities available to strengthen local meat supply chains. One of those grants is the Value Added Producer Grant (VAPG), under the purview of USDA’s Rural Development.
ChopLocal, a farmer-owned company dedicated to helping farmers and small meat processors sell more meat online, is hosting a free webinar on Tuesday, January 24 at 6 pm EST/7pm CST to help producers learn more about the VAPG. The webinar will review the grant requirements, and Stephen Ussery from Stewards Unlimited, an agricultural grant writing service, will share tips on writing successful grant applications.
“Grant-writing can be an intimidating process for farmers,” says Ussery, “but I’ve found that the Value Added Producer Grant is a great place to start.” Ussery has written several successful VAPG applications for farmers in the past, including the Barreras Family Farm in Blair, Nebraska, which received $249,518 for beef processing through the Value-Added Producer Grant.
Many farmers selling direct-to-consumer, including livestock farmers, are eligible to apply for VAPG. The maximum grant award is $250,000, which must be matched by the farmer. A reduced cost-share match requirement of 10 percent of the grant amount is available for a portion of the funds.
“Because the VAPG funds can be used to offset processing and marketing costs, the grant can really accelerate the growth of a direct-to-consumer farm business,” says Katie Olthoff, ChopLocal.
Producers interested in learning more about the VAPG and other grant opportunities can register for the webinar at http://sell.choplocal.com/vapg-2022.
–Chop Local