Utah Agriculture Grants

This grant provides financial support to Utah-based food processors to improve their processing and storage capabilities, thereby enhancing local food availability and resilience.

This grant provides funding for various organizations and individuals in Utah to combat invasive plant species through detection, control, and restoration efforts.

This program provides financial support to businesses and nonprofit organizations in San Juan County, Utah, to promote economic development through expansion, workforce training, and infrastructure improvements.

This funding initiative provides financial support to Salt Lake City residents and community organizations for projects that improve access to fresh, healthy, and culturally relevant food while addressing local food system disparities.

This grant provides financial support to food business entrepreneurs in Utah to help them grow, innovate, and enhance local food systems, particularly in economically distressed areas.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to agricultural producers in Utah for projects that improve water efficiency and optimize irrigation systems, promoting sustainable water practices in the agricultural sector.

This program provides matching funds to local businesses, nonprofits, and government entities in Carbon County, Utah, to support economic development projects that improve infrastructure, workforce training, and facilities.

The LeRay McAllister Working Farm and Ranch Fund provides grants to preserve or restore critical open land or agricultural land in Utah. Donor Name: Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) State: Utah County: All Counties Type of Grant: Grant | Matching Grants Deadline: (mm/dd/yyyy) 08/16/2024 Size of the Grant: $500,000 to $1 million Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned Details: The purpose of the LeRay McAllister Working Farm and Ranch Fund is to conserve productive farm and ranch land through voluntary, incentive-based approaches on properties that will positively impact Utah’s agricultural future, whether on its own or as part of a broader working landscape. This includes properties that preserve significant aspects of the State’s agricultural heritage.  The program seeks to ensure the protection of vital farmland, promote sustainable agricultural practices, and safeguard the long-term viability of agricultural communities and markets in Utah. These conservation projects not only benefit individual landowners and the State’s agricultural economy, but they also provide a wealth of benefits to the public by preserving scenic open space, and wildlife habitat, and maintaining critical ecosystem functions. The LeRay McAllister Program uses funds appropriated by the Utah Legislature to purchase conservation easements on important pieces of private land, acquire small parcels in fee title under limited circumstances, and provide small restoration grants to improve conserved lands. Funding Information A total of $1,000,000 was appropriated by the Legislature for 2024. Matching funds are required. Eligibility Criteria Eligible applicants must be a qualified easement-holding entity. A qualified easement-holding entity must have an organizational commitment to protect the conservation values of the easement and have the resources and expertise to enforce those restrictions in perpetuity. This can include local entities (counties, cities, towns), UDAF, the Utah Department of Natural Resources and its divisions, Land Trusts, and charitable organizations that qualify as tax-exempt under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. For more information, visit UDAF.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to conservation districts in Utah to organize workshops and conferences that educate agricultural producers on soil health practices.

The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) is pleased to announce the opening of the Local Soil Health Workshop Grant. Donor Name: Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) State: Utah County: All Counties Type of Grant: Grant | Reimbursement Deadline: (mm/dd/yyyy) 06/14/2024 Size of the Grant: $1000 to $10,000 Grant Duration: Grant Duration Not Mentioned Details: The grant is meant to increase opportunities for Utah agricultural producers and professionals to learn about regenerative farming practices and build local networks of soil health-focused individuals.  Funding will be made available for the conservation district to host local workshops/conferences focused on soil health. The funding cap will be $10,000 per application, with a focus on holding workshops in the 2025 calendar year. The grants will be reimbursement-based. Funding will be used for the rental of event facility, speaker fees, supplies, advertisements, and meals (within per diem rate). Objectives Expanding localized knowledge of soil health principles and practices across the state through smaller community-sized education and outreach events across the state.      Conferences / Workshops Provide resources to cover expenses to      Pay for expert speakers Pay for soil practitioner presenters from around the state to present Supplies, advertisements, and event rental to host the events Providing a support network for producers implementing soil health Increase implementation of soil health practices through knowledge sharing      Field days / Demonstration Events. Funding Information Grant Cycle Total Funding Available: $30,000. Award Ceiling $10,000. Award Floor $1,500. Eligible Costs  Event space rental Speaker Fees Meals (within state per diem rates) Printed Materials / Supplies Advertisements Administrative Costs (5% max). Eligibility Criteria  Organizations that work with agriculture producers in the state of Utah. Organizations with the capacity and experience to host high-quality local events. Organizations with experience in grant management, and project implementation. Must be for a new event or significantly expanding the scope of existing events. For more information, visit UDAF.

The Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) is accepting applications for its Food Security Processing Grant Program. Donor Name: Utah Department of Agriculture and Food (UDAF) State: Utah County: All Counties Type of Grant: Grant Deadline: 05/31/2024 Size of the Grant: $100,000 to $500,000 Grant Duration: 1 Year Details: The Utah Food Security Processing Grant (UFSPG) was created in 2022 with a $1 million appropriation from the Utah State Legislature. With these funds, UDAF issued grants to Utah-based businesses to increase processing capacity of agricultural products produced in the state. UDAF received additional funding to continue this program during the 2023 and 2024 legislative sessions. The UFSPG covers expenses including processing equipment, coolers/freezers, contractor costs (plumbing, draining, electrical work), portion cutters, slaughter equipment, sorting equipment, bottling equipment, etc. Funding Information Individual grant awards will be capped at $200,000. 50% of the funds will be set aside for meat and poultry processing. $20,000 will be held for microgrants of $5,000 or less. Applicants must complete planned improvement, purchase equipment, etc. no earlier than July 1, 2024, and no later than June 30, 2025. Eligible Expenses May include, but are not limited to Coolers/freezers Portion cutters Processing equipment (smoking units, sausage stuffers, etc.) Slaughter equipment (cradles, saws, hooks, scalders, sinks, etc.) Electronic sorting equipment (e.g. grading and sizing for apples, cherries, or peaches) Bottling equipment for juices Contractor costs (plumbing, draining, venting, electrical work) Eligibility Criteria Grants of up to $200,000 are available to processors located in Utah with no more than 100 employees who use at least 51% of ingredients or product inputs that were grown/raised in Utah, or that sell at least 51% of their products to Utah consumers. Meat/poultry processors wishing to apply must be either: A state-inspected “equal-to” slaughter and/or processing plant, A licensed custom-exempt slaughter plant, or A Talmadge-Aiken (TA) or very small federally inspected plant. For more information, visit UDAF.