The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services announced they are accepting pre-applications for the 2026 Specialty Crop Block Grant program through January, until Feb. 6. The funding is intended to increase the competitiveness of Virginia specialty crops in the marketplace.
If you would like to submit a pre-application, you can do so here until 5 p.m. on Feb. 6. Those selected to develop a full proposal will be notified by Feb. 23, and proposals will be due on March 13. The grant period is expected to begin on Oct. 1 and last up to two years.
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VDACS said they will give priority to projects that have the sole purpose of enhancing the competitiveness of specialty crops in regards to the following issues:
- Enhance food safety.
- Improve the capacity of all entities in the specialty crop distribution chain to comply with the requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act and in cost-share arrangements for finding audits of such systems, including USDA GroupGAP, for small farmers, packers, and processors.
- Invest in specialty crop research, including research to focus on conservation and environmental outcomes.
- Develop new and improved seed varieties and specialty crops.
- Improve pest and disease control.
- Increase child and adult nutrition knowledge and consumption of specialty crops.
- Improve efficiency and reducing costs of distribution systems.
- Enhance sustainability.
For more information, click here.