Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program
Applications Now Open!
Deadline: January 10, 2025
The Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program is designed to increase the availability of local foods in schools and connect students to the sources of their food through education, taste tests, school gardens, field trips, and local food sourcing for school meals. Grants can launch new farm to school programs or expand existing efforts.
On an annual basis, USDA awards competitive Farm to School grants that support planning, developing, and implementing farm to school programs. USDA’s Farm to School grants are an important way to help state, regional, and local organizations as they initiate, expand, and institutionalize farm to school efforts.
Applicants may decide which grant track best suits their project. This year the RFA has been split into three separate solicitations. Please note, applicants can only submit one application across the three solicitations listed below. If multiple packages are submitted through Grants.gov by the same applicant to more than one solicitations, ALL submissions will be removed.
Farm to School Implementation Grant
The objective of the Farm to School Implementation Grant is to improve access to local foods in eligible CNP sites through comprehensive farm to school programming that includes both local sourcing and agricultural education efforts. Project proposals should incorporate both elements of the required objective.
The FY 2025 Farm to School Implementation Grant awards projects of 24 months in length for funding up to $500,000. Applicants are required to provide matching support of at least 25 percent of the total project budget in the form of cash or in-kind contributions.
Eligibility
Eligible applicants for the Implementation grant may include schools and other institutions that operate child nutrition programs, Indian Tribal Organizations, agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers, non-profit entities, and local agencies.
Entities not meeting the eligibility definitions will be deemed ineligible and removed from competition without further consideration. The following are eligible entities for the FY 2025 Farm to School Implementation Grant, which are described in more detail in the RFA.
- Eligible schools, including non-profit private and charter schools, which operate the NSLP and/or SBP;
- Eligible child care institutions, including non-school based institutions that have an agreement with the state agency to operate CACFP;
- Eligible summer sponsors, including non-school based institutions that have an agreement with the state agency to operate SFSP;
- Local agencies;
- Indian Tribal Organizations and Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs);
- Agricultural producers;
- Non-profit entities.
Apply for Implementation Grant
Farm to School Grant – Turnkey
The objective of the Farm to School Turnkey grants is to simplify the proposal-writing process by providing pre-designed activities to simplify applications for frequently proposed farm to school projects. However, it is important for all prospective applicants to read the RFA in full to ensure that they understand all submission requirements.
There are three Turnkey Grant project tracks available in 2025: Action Planning, Agricultural Education, and Edible Gardens. Applicants may only apply to one project track. The project types are summarized as follows:
- Turnkey – Action Planning grantees will develop a roadmap for launching or enhancing farm to school activities.
- Turnkey – Agricultural Education grantees will incorporate agricultural education into curricula.
- Turnkey – Edible Gardens grantees will implement a food production operation.
All applicants must demonstrate a commitment to one or more federal child nutrition program(s).
The FY 2025 Farm to School Turnkey Grant awards projects of 24 months in length for funding up to $50,000. Applicants are required to provide matching support of at least 25 percent of the total project budget in the form of cash or in-kind contributions.
Eligibility
Eligible applicants for the Turnkey Grant may include schools and other institutions that operate child nutrition programs, Indian Tribal Organizations, agricultural producers or groups of agricultural producers, non-profit entities, and local agencies.
The following are eligible entities for the FY 2025 Farm to School Turnkey Grant, which are described in more detail below.
- Eligible schools, including non-profit private and charter schools, which operate the NSLP and/or SBP;
- Eligible child care institutions, including non-school based institutions that have an agreement with the state agency to operate CACFP;
- Eligible summer sponsors, including non-school based institutions that have an agreement with the state agency to operate SFSP;
- Local agencies;
- Indian Tribal Organizations and Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs);
- Agricultural producers;
- Non-profit entities.
Apply for Turney Grant
For additional information please see the Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program website.
To apply, visit Grants.gov and follow the instructions found in each FY 2025 RFA.
