For more information about the Farm to School grants, please register for the upcoming informational webinars:

• Introduction to the RFA, Nov 5 - https://www.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_3-JYEJEyTkq4ySEIwb6gTQ
• Submitting a Complete Grant Package, Nov 6 - https://www.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_KqjKRZ03SMahpFOpZCkPgw

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. The objective of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2025 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 Fiscal Year (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. 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. Note that State agencies are not eligible for Farm to School Implementation Grants. Please see section 3 for additional details on eligibility.

This RFA is one of three funding opportunities being offered under the Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant Program in FY 2025. Please see the RFA Grant Track Decision Document under the “Related Documents” tab for this opportunity in grants.gov for more information on the different grant types.

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 Request for Applications (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 SFSP 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; and - Non-profit entities. Entity type must be clearly indicated and unambiguous in all application materials. Applicants can only apply as one entity type. If an applicant can meet the criteria for more than one eligibility type, they should choose the entity type that best aligns with their organization. If USDA cannot determine the applicant to be an eligible entity based on information contained within the application, the applicant will be deemed ineligible and removed from competition without further consideration. Additionally, applicants can only submit one application across the three FY 2025 Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant solicitations (i.e. Implementation, Turnkey or State Agency). If multiple packages are submitted through Grants.gov by the same applicant to more than one FY 2025 Patrick Leahy Farm to School Grant solicitations ALL submissions will be removed from further consideration.

Anna J Arrowsmith Grants Officer