Northeast SARE Farmer Grant Program

Northeast SARE offers grants to farmers to explore new concepts in sustainable agriculture conducted through experiments, surveys, prototypes, on-farm demonstrations or other research and education techniques. Farmer Grant projects address issues that affect farming with long-term sustainability in mind.

Competitive proposals explore new techniques. Reviewers look to fund projects that are well-designed, meet the program's legislative priorities, and serve to benefit sustainable agriculture in the Northeast.

For guidance on designing a project, see SARE's bulletin "How to Conduct Research on Your Farm or Ranch." To see examples of funded Farmer Grant projects, visit the national SARE project database at projects.sare.org.

The Farmer Grant program is open to all commercial farm business owners and farm employees in the Northeast region, and accepts applications from all scales of farms (large, small, organic, etc.).

To be eligible, you must meet the U.S. Census of Agriculture definition of a farm: "Any place from which $1,000 or more of agricultural products were produced and sold, or normally would have been sold, during the census year."

Farm employees are eligible to apply; if applying as a farm employee, you must complete a Grant Commitment Form signed by both you and the farm owner (who is financially responsible for the project). Farmers on farms affiliated with an institution or a nonprofit organization are also eligible if the farm produces and sells agricultural products meeting the farm definition; such proposals must use the name of the 501(c) organization and complete a Grant Commitment Form.

Northeast SARE grants are paid on a reimbursement basis, so your farm must have the legal structure and financial capacity to expend funds before receiving reimbursement (no advance payments). Projects must take place within the Northeast region. Proposals are limited to one per farm per year. Current grant recipients behind in reporting cannot apply.

This grant program is not meant to help start or expand farm businesses. Farmer Grant funds cannot be used for capital costs associated with building a barn, greenhouse, or other major farm fixture, nor can funds be used to start a farm, purchase durable equipment like tractors or computers, or for any utility, telephone, or other costs that would be there in the absence of the project.

Farmer Grant recipients are expected to collect and manage reliable data about their project and convey this information clearly through annual and final reports. Learn more about Managing Farmer Grants here.

Proposals are submitted online at: projects.sare.org

You must make an account to apply.

• Budget Template: https://northeast.sare.org/budgettemplate

• Farmer Grant Commitment Form: https://northeast.sare.org/FarmerGrantCommitment

• Northeast SARE's Definition of a Farm

• Tips for Writing a Strong Proposal

• Technical Advisor Guide

• How to Conduct Research on Your Farm or Ranch

• One-Page Program Summary

• View Call for Proposals: http://northeast.sare.org/FarmerGrantCall