Another round of weather resilience grants avaialble for specialty crop growers

A new round of weather resilience grants is available to specialty crop growers in Minnesota to help cover the costs of things like water tanks and wells, irrigation equipment, fans, shade systems, windbreaks, and more. Extension is available to support growers in brainstorming climate / weather resilience practices for your farms. Applications are due February 12, 2025.

Looking for ideas? Check out our new page about climate resilience strategies for specialty crop growers. 

If you are interested in brainstorming ideas or looking for support with your application, please do not hesitate to reach out to Natalie Hoidal at hoida016@umn.edu. 

Image: tensiometer for measuring soil moisture and fine-tuning irrigation practices

The full press release from MDA is copied below:

Recognizing the risks posed by extreme weather, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is offering a grant opportunity to help eligible producers make their operations more resilient to drought, flooding, and severe weather events like storms, tornadoes, and straight-line winds.

The Preparing for Extreme Weather Grant, also referred to as the Prepare Grant, offers grants of up to $10,000 for Minnesota livestock and specialty crop producers to buy and install supplies and equipment for weather event preparation. It requires a 50% match.

“Minnesota agriculture needs to prepare for more climate extremes in the future,” said MDA Commissioner Thom Petersen. “This will help farmers and ranchers increase the resiliency of their operations and reduce some of the stress and anxiety around the weather.”

For the purposes of this grant program:

Livestock includes aquaculture, bees, beef cattle, dairy cattle, swine, poultry, goats, mules, farmed cervids, ratites (including ostriches and emus), bison, sheep, horses, and llamas.

Specialty crops include fruits and vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture and nursery crops, and floriculture. See USDA’s list of Specialty Crops for further examples.

Eligible projects include — but are not limited to — water tanks, pipelines, and wagons/trailers; wells (new improvements, fixes, replacement pumps); irrigation equipment (including drip irrigation); fans; misters; livestock shade systems; and windbreaks.

The MDA expects to award 50 to 75 grants through a competitive review process. There is $500,000 available for this program. Applications will be accepted through 4 p.m. Central Time on February 12, 2025, and the MDA will notify applicants as soon as possible, but no later than March 26, 2025, about whether their proposal was selected for funding.

Full grant details and the request for proposals (RFP) can be found on the MDA website.

The Preparing for Extreme Weather Grant is funded by the Agricultural Growth and Research Initiative (AGRI) Program, which supports advances in Minnesota’s agricultural and renewable energy sectors.