Description:  

The Asian Business Institute and Resource Center (ABIRC) is pleased to announce a funding opportunity for its Urban Agriculture Grant Program, which is funded by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA). The purpose of this program is to grant funds for profit and non-profit urban agriculture projects that enhance the viability of urban agriculture in urban areas across Fresno and Bakersfield. Per CDFA, urban agriculture is defined as the cultivation, processing, and distribution of agricultural products in urban settings, including things like inground small plot cultivation, raised beds, vertical production, warehouse farms, mushroom growing, urban forestry and tree care, community gardens, rooftop farms, hydroponic, aeroponic, and aquaponic facilities, and other innovations. CDFA defines “urban” as a geographic area no more than 25 miles adjacent to or outside of one Urbanized Area containing a population of 50,000 or more people. 

Eligibility: 

To be eligible, applicants may be for-profit organizations and businesses, non-profit organizations, individuals, or Native American individuals and Tribal governments operating an urban agriculture project within 25 miles of an urban area located within the urban region of the applicant. Tribal applicants are exempt from the requirement to be in an urban area and may be located anywhere. All Native American individuals and Tribal governments are eligible to apply.   

Funding and Duration:  

This program is funded by the Asian Business Institute and Resource Center.  There are two tracks for this program: 

1. Track 1: Non-profit organizations are eligible to apply for a grant of $50,000.00. Only four awards will be given out for this track.  

1. Track 2: Small business owners and for-profit organizations are eligible to apply for a grant of either $10,000.00 or $20,000.00. Eight awards will be given out for this track – four $10,000.00 and four $20,000.00. 

Applicants may apply to either Track 1 or Track 2 but not to both tracks.  

The anticipated start date is May 1, 2025. Projects will run from May 1, 2025, to October 31, 2025 (18 months).  

Project Requirements: 

Subawards to eligible stakeholders can fund infrastructure, equipment, workforce development, community engagement efforts, operations or technical assistance needs. Subaward projects must accomplish one or more of the following: 

• 1: Build Social Capital and Gather Communities: Demonstrate community engagement practices.  

• 2: Provide Education and Skills Development: Provide employment development opportunities, especially youth employment and development opportunities.  

• 3: Supplement Access to Fresh Food: Support the viability of urban food cultivation, processing, or distribution.  

• 4: Cultivate Agricultural Literacy: Provide educational opportunities as it relates to growing or consuming locally grown seasonal produce.  

• 5: Perform Ecosystem Services: Provide urban greening, habitat restoration and environmentally beneficial services such as but not limited to planting hedgerows, native plant gardens or food forests. 

• 6: Support Economic Development: Create new market opportunities and spur entrepreneurial activity. 

• 7: Increase Food Sovereignty: Creates or supports spaces for community members to provide themselves with healthy and culturally appropriate food produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods. 

• 8: Pilot an Innovation in Production: Such as but not limited to mushroom propagation, aquaponics, aeroponics, hydroponics, rooftop gardens or warehouse farms. 

Priority Points:  

Priority will be given to urban agriculture projects led by or serving priority populations. Priority Populations will be identified using the California Air Resources Board’s California Climate Investments Priority Populations map. 

To utilize the map, please follow these directions 

1. Click on the map link as shown above 

2. Enter the project address 

3. In order to qualify for priority points, your project must be located in or be led by a priority population that qualifies as Low Income or Disadvantaged as seen in Blue, Green, or Yellow fields on the map. 

Budget Requirements:  

Indirect Costs: 

Up to 30% of the total subaward funds may be used for Indirect Costs, such as: grant administration, accounting, printing, or utilities associated with the program. 

Direct Costs: 

At least 70% of subaward funds must be used for direct program implementation, including infrastructure, equipment, technical assistance, workforce development or community engagement.  

Examples include but are not limited to the following:  

Infrastructure: 

• Site development, plans and drawings, permits, legal fees, consultant fees 

• Season extension such as hoop houses, high tunnels, shade houses, green houses 

• Irrigation systems including water connection, installation, improvements, meters, hardware 

• Tool storage sheds or containers 

• Wash and pack areas including shade structures, drainage pits or other needs 

• Community gathering spaces including picnic tables, DG pathways, seating for workshops or other engagement activities, shade structures, outdoor kitchens, demonstration sites 

• Aggregation and distribution preparation areas 

• Land improvements including soil testing, amendments, remediations, weed management 

• Innovations in production equipment such as hydroponic or aquaponic systems 

Technical Assistance: 

• Peer to Peer TA providers to mentor, train, and support urban farmers and community-based organizations 

• Recognized experienced TA providers to mentor, train, and support urban farmers and community-based organizations 

• Business planning 

• Forming cooperatives 

• Marketing and communications 

• Food safety certifications  

• Climate smart agriculture certifications, such as: transition to organic  

• Evaluation, data collection, quantitative and qualitative reports on impact of project  

• Design, Planning and Implementation consultants and contractors for: 

• Weed management 

• Irrigation 

• Soils 

• Site development 

• Navigation of permits and legal processes 

• Website development  

Workforce Development & Operations: 

• Staff capacity to operate programming 

• Internship stipends or hourly pay 

• Professional development opportunities  

• Ensuring youth from all backgrounds have access to paid positions developing urban food systems 

Community Engagement & Education: 

• Community workshop development and materials 

• Staff capacity to operate community engagement activities 

• Translation services for community engagement at an urban farm 

• Open house tours and fieldtrips for residents, students, elderly, or other underserved community members  

• Agritourism 

Supplies: 

• Tools including hand tools, mechanized tools, harvesting tools, weed management tools etc. 

• Post-harvest wash stations, bins, boxes, labels, packaging etc. 

• Farm stand, Community Supported Agriculture, or other marketing supplies 

• Technology and software for sales, marketing, and communications 

• Technology and software for field management 

Equipment: 

• Delivery vehicles 

• Walk behind tractors 

• Tractors 

• Soil mixers, woodchippers, shredders, and threshers  

• Refrigeration units for storage of fresh produce grown by the subaward recipient and additional community partners if applicable. See refrigeration requirements in Appendix D.  

Equipment Guidelines: 

• All equipment purchased will need to be inventoried by the ABIRC.  

• Equipment is defined as: Tangible personal property having a useful life of more than one year and a per-unit acquisition cost of $5,000 or more. The acquisition cost includes the cost of any necessary accessories and all incidental costs incurred to put the asset into place and ready for its intended use. 

• Special purpose equipment is used only for research, scientific, or other technical activities. For example, electron microscopes, spectrometers, and dairy digesters are special purpose equipment.  

• General purpose equipment is not limited to research, scientific or other technical activities. For example, office equipment and furnishings, modular offices, telephone networks, information technology equipment and systems, air conditioning equipment, reproduction and printing equipment, and motor vehicles are general purpose equipment. 

Unallowable Costs: 

Any indirect costs above 30%, are unallowable, as well as any costs not directly approved by CDFA, ABIRC, and incorporated into the grant agreement. 

Application Timeline: 

The timeline for this application process is as follows: 

• Applicants will first need to submit an application that provides a general overview of their project. The application period is November 1, 2024 to January 15, 2024.  

• Applications will be reviewed from January 2025 to February 2025.  

• Applicants will be informed of their status in early March 2025. Applicants will either be denied or invited to an interview that will determine whether they will be funded.  

• Interviews will take place from late March 2025 to early April 2025.  

• Awards will be announced in late April 2025.  

Submission Guidelines: 

Please submit your application no later than 5PM on January 15, 2025 .

Reporting Requirements: 

Applicants who are selected for funding will be required to submit receipts and invoices on a monthly basis, as well as engage in quarterly check-ins with ABIRC personnel. Along with this, ABIRC personnel will also conduct site visits. A two-week notice will be provided prior to the visit.