Food Safety Outreach Competitive Grants Program | USDA NIFA FSMA 007213

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NIFA FSMA 007213

The Food Safety Outreach Competitive Grants Program (FSOP) is a discretionary grant opportunity run by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under CFDA 10.328. Its main purpose is to strengthen and expand the national food safety training system by funding projects that deliver practical, customized food safety education and technical assistance to people who most need hands-on support. The program is designed to complement and extend the broader National Food Safety Training, Education, Extension, Outreach, and Technical Assistance Competitive Grants Program by keeping a steady, on-the-ground focus on training delivery rather than just building resources.

At the core of this opportunity is a clear target audience: owners and operators of small to mid-sized farms, beginning farmers, socially disadvantaged farmers, small food processors, and small fresh fruit and vegetable merchant wholesalers. Funded projects are expected to develop and carry out training, education, extension activities, outreach, and technical assistance that directly responds to the real-world needs and constraints of these groups. In practice, that means helping smaller and historically underserved operations better understand and implement food safety practices, navigate expectations tied to food safety rules and buyer requirements, and reduce risk through improved handling, processing, and distribution practices.

A key feature of FSOP is its emphasis on local and community-rooted delivery. NIFA is looking for applications that originate from and are implemented through local networks, including community-based organizations, non-governmental organizations, food hubs, farm cooperatives, extension programs, and other local groups that already have trusted relationships with producers and small food businesses. The logic is straightforward: food safety training is more likely to stick when it is tailored to the language, scale, crops, markets, and day-to-day realities of the audience, and when it is delivered by organizations they already interact with.

Eligibility is broad but specific. Applicants must fit at least one of the following categories: (1) a Cooperative Extension Service for a US state or territory; (2) a non-governmental organization and/or community-based organization that represents farm owners/operators, small processors, or small fruit and vegetable merchant wholesalers and that also demonstrates a commitment to public health and experience administering food safety-related programming; (3) a federal, state, local, or tribal government agency; (4) an institution of higher education as defined in the Higher Education Act of 1965 (or a foundation maintained by such an institution); or (5) a collaboration of two or more eligible entities. Partnerships are explicitly allowed and can be a practical way to combine technical expertise (such as extension or university food safety specialists) with trusted community access (such as producer groups, cooperatives, or food hubs).

There are also important compliance notes. Applicants must meet all requirements described in the request for applications (RFA) by the deadline, or they may be removed from consideration or become ineligible for an award. The opportunity also prohibits duplicate or multiple submissions from the same applicant; if an applicant submits more than one application, NIFA will disqualify both. For organizations that are new to federal grants, NIFA points applicants to its Grants Overview resources to help them understand expectations and the federal award process.

Administrative details from the listing include the funding opportunity number USDA NIFA FSMA 007213, the original closing date of April 7, 2020, and the funding instrument type listed as a grant within the agriculture funding activity category. The award ceiling and expected number of awards are not specified in the provided source text, so applicants would need to consult the full RFA for the budget limits, project periods, and any priority areas or required project components.

• The National Institute of Food and Agriculture in the agriculture sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Food Safety Outreach Competitive Grants Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.328.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2020-02-21.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2020-04-07. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for USDA NIFA FSMA 007213

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