Farm and Food Workers Relief Grant Program (FFWR)

The Farm and Food Workers Relief Grant Program provides approximately $665 million in Consolidated Appropriations Act funds to provide grants to State agencies, Tribal entities, and nonprofit organizations with experience in providing support or relief services to farmworkers or meatpacking workers. Awards will generally range from $5 million to $50 million.

Entities receiving awards will then distribute relief payments to frontline farmworkers and meatpacking workers who incurred expenses preparing for, preventing exposure to, and responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. Through this program, a one-time direct relief payment of $600 will be available to qualifying frontline farm, grocery, and meatpacking workers for expenses incurred due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

USDA strongly encourages small organizations to partner together or to partner with national organizations in submitting applications to ensure this support has the broadest reach and distribution possible to America’s farm and food workers. AMS will set aside up to a total of $20 million of this amount for one or more grant agreements to benefit grocery store workers. 

USDA AMS has partnered with two organizations, UFW Foundation and Corazón Latino, to provide applicants with technical assistance support as they prepare applications. The technical assistance providers are available to help identify grant preparation resources, potential partners and key considerations when developing a competitive grant application and successful program.

Eligible beneficiaries for this program are defined as hired workers in farming activities, meatpacking, or grocery store work. AMS expects beneficiaries across these worker types to be frontline workers, and not those working in management positions. The grant recipients of the FFWR Grant Program (State agencies, Tribal Entities, and non-profit organizations) will distribute funds to eligible beneficiaries.

Eligible beneficiaries (frontline workers) should monitor the Awarded Grants Page for information about how to apply for their relief payment.

• Awarded Grants Page

• FY 2023 Awarded Groups