Browse Ambrook’s collection of funding programs by Maryland Agriculture & Resource-Based Industry Development Corporation (MARBIDCO)

Application

Applicants must verify in their application that commercial lender or Farm Service Agency loan proceeds are available to help complete the proposed farming project. Applicants that are awarded grants may not materially deviate from their approved business plans without approval from MARBIDCO and the participating commercial lender.

Mail completed applications to:

MARBIDCO Programs
1410 Forest Dr., Suite 21
Annapolis, MD 21403

Maryland Agriculture & Resource-Based Industry Development Company

Obtaining financing is difficult for most farmers, but particularly for urban farmers. A very small amount of equity capital can make a significant difference in helping these business owners to obtain bank financing (commercial loans).


MARBIDCO’s MUACLIG program addresses the finance needs of urban farmers. With the support of Farm Credit, MARBIDCO provides grant funds to incentivize the urban farmer to try to obtain commercial financing.



Obtaining financing is difficult for most farmers, but particularly for urban farmers. A very small amount of equity capital can make a significant difference in helping these business owners to obtain bank financing (commercial loans).

MARBIDCO’s MUACLIG program addresses the finance needs of urban farmers. With the support of Farm Credit, MARBIDCO provides grant funds to incentivize the urban farmer to try to obtain commercial financing.

Applicants must be qualified Beginning Urban Farmers, which are defined as being farmers (either individuals or incorporated businesses) with the principal operator(s) having:
- Limited personal or business financial resources;
- A food/fiber growing operation located in an urban community (i.e., must be geographically located within an incorporated municipality, or within the Baltimore or Washington beltways including the City of Baltimore);
- Ten or fewer years of commercial farming experience – either in a for-profit or not-for-profit setting; and
- No previous commercial agriculture loan history.

Eligible business activities include the purchase of:
- Agricultural inputs and supplies such as seed, fertilizer, compost, and baskets;
- Farm tools and equipment;
- Greenhouses, high tunnels, refrigeration, and irrigation systems; and
- Hired labor (at no more than 20% of the total eligible project cost).


A lump sum of money for a specific purpose that does not need to be paid back.

Grant

Business Plan

Cash Rent

Refinancing

Transition

Feed

Fertilizer

Pest Management

Seed

Weeds

Waste & Manure Management

HVAC

Lighting

Repairs

Training

Succession

Historically Underserved

Inputs

Nutrient Management

Infrastructure

Conservation

Water Management

Maximum Grant Amount: $10,000, calculated at no more than 20% of the project’s total cost and no more than 25% of the amount of the approved commercial loan for the project. (The minimum grant amount is $1,000 – with a commercial loan of $4,000, combines for a $5,000 project).

Read and complete the appropriate application form for either a Small-Scale Farmer Aggregation Project or a Public Sector Aggregation Project. 
Send completed applications and all attachments to:
MARBIDCO Local Farm Enterprise Food Aggregation Grant Program 
1410 Forest Drive, Suite 21
Annapolis, MD 21403
or email to skubofcik@marbidco.org.

Stacy Kubofcik

The purpose of the Certified Local Farm Enterprise Food Aggregation Grant Program is to demonstrate how the investment of funds can help to grow and strengthen Maryland’s local food system and to create opportunities for small farmers to sell products to&#x2004;wholesale and institutional markets. The grant funds will be used to fund projects that help small farmers aggregate their product to sell to institutional or wholesale buyer. Funds will be used to provide financial support to up to five small-scale farmer-led projects. See below for more information:

MARBIDCO offers two levels of grant funding for food aggregation projects:

1. **Small-Scale Farmer Aggregation Project** – A grant of between $25,000 and $100,000 is available. 

2. **Public Sector Aggregation Project** – A grant of between $150,000 and $400,000 is available. 



The purpose of the Certified Local Farm Enterprise Food Aggregation Grant Program is to demonstrate how the investment of funds can help to grow and strengthen Maryland’s local food system and to create opportunities for small farmers to sell products to wholesale and institutional markets. The grant funds will be used to fund projects that help small farmers aggregate their product to sell to institutional or wholesale buyer. Funds will be used to provide financial support to up to five small-scale farmer-led projects. See below for more information:
MARBIDCO offers two levels of grant funding for food aggregation projects:
1. Small-Scale Farmer Aggregation Project – A grant of between $25,000 and $100,000 is available. 
2. Public Sector Aggregation Project – A grant of between $150,000 and $400,000 is available. 

Small-Scale Farmer Aggregation Project
Applicants for the small-scale farmer aggregation grant must include at least four Certified Local Farm Enterprise farmers and applicants must provide at least a 20% match of private funds in the project. An example of a small-scale aggregation entity could include an agricultural marketing group (an LLC), or legally organized farm cooperative using the grant funds to purchase cold storage equipment or construct an indoor processing facility in order to better handle products moving to wholesale and institutional buyers.The applicant must provide evidence that it will be selling some quantity of product to a specific wholesale or institutional buyer. An example could be the public school system. This could be in the form of a contract or letter of commitment, which specifies it will purchase a certain amount of product
Public Sector Aggregation Project
Applicants for the larger scale aggregation grant will be a public entity (such as a county government, municipality, community college, university, county school system or rural regional council). The grant is for public projects that plan to be primarily aggregation centers for wholesale and institutional buyers. If the applicant is the buyer, it would need to provide a commitment to purchase from at least four Certified Local Farm Enterprise farmers and include what it plans to purchase and the amount of each product. If the applicant is facilitating the aggregation, it would need to provide evidence of that it will aggregate produce from at least four Certified Local Farm Enterprise farmers and provide a commitment from a wholesaler or institution to purchase from the aggregation center. The grant requires at least a 20% match of funds in the project. A project of this size might also require a partnership of multiple entities and funding sources.

Local Food

Farmers Market

Certification

Distribution

Diversification

Events

Trade Show

Stewardship

Certified Organic

Trade Relief

Food Systems

Send complete applications (below) to scriste@marbidco.org. Electronic submissions are encouraged.

Application Link 

Or mail to 
MARBIDCO – Livestock Proc. Equip. Grant 
c/o Sierra Criste 
1410 Forest Drive, Suite 21 
Annapolis, MD 21403

Sierra Criste

MARBIDCO has established the Maryland Livestock Processing Equipment Grant Program to help assist with the expansion of livestock processing capacity&#x2004;in Maryland. This program offers grants to eligible applicants to purchase livestock and meat processing equipment and/or upgrade facilities to help increase production in Maryland, with a particular focus on large animal and blue catfish processing. (Smaller scale poultry processing projects may also be eligible.)

MARBIDCO will contribute up to 50% towards the eligible costs, with a maximum grant award amount of $50,000 for USDA-inspected facility projects and maximum grant award amount of $30,000 for custom-exempt processing or mobile processing projects.



MARBIDCO has established the Maryland Livestock Processing Equipment Grant Program to help assist with the expansion of livestock processing capacity in Maryland. This program offers grants to eligible applicants to purchase livestock and meat processing equipment and/or upgrade facilities to help increase production in Maryland, with a particular focus on large animal and blue catfish processing. (Smaller scale poultry processing projects may also be eligible.)
MARBIDCO will contribute up to 50% towards the eligible costs, with a maximum grant award amount of $50,000 for USDA-inspected facility projects and maximum grant award amount of $30,000 for custom-exempt processing or mobile processing projects.

Eligible applicants include individuals and businesses who currently operate livestock and meat processing enterprises in Maryland, as well as those that can start such operations by no later than July 31, 2023. These applicants can include sole proprietorships, partnerships, cooperatives, corporations, or LLCs.
Eligible expenses: Grant funds (and matching funds paid by the applicant) must be used to purchase livestock and meat processing equipment for USDA-inspected facilities, custom-exempt or mobile processing projects. Livestock processing equipment items purchased prior to April 1, 2023, are not eligible to be reimbursed using these grant funds.

A payment that requires some percentage of matching contributions by the recipient.

Cost Share

Livestock

Cattle

Pigs

Poultry

Sheep

Specialty Livestock

Beef Cattle

Dairy Cattle

Feeder Cattle

Slaughter Cattle

Calves

Heifers

Steers

Bulls

Barrows

Boars

Feeder Pigs

Hogs

Sows

Chickens

Cornish Hens

Ducks

Geese

Turkey

Ewes

Lambs

Rams

Alpacas

Beefalo

Bison

Buffalo

Caribou

Deer

Emus

Goats

Guinea Pigs

Llamas

Mink

Mohair

Ostrich

Pheasants

Quail

Rabbits

Reindeer

Water Buffalo

Beef Bottom Round

Beef Brisket

Beef Chuck Roast

Beef Eye Round

Beef Flank Steak

Beef Flat Iron Steak

Beef Heart

Beef Liver

Beef London Broil

Beef NY Strip Steak

Beef Oxtail

Beef Rib Steak

Beef Rump Roast

Beef Short Ribs

Beef Sirloin

Beef Sirloin Tip Roast

Beef Skirt Steak

Beef Soup Bones

Beef Stew Meat

Beef Tongue

Beef Top Round

Beef Whole Filet

Ground Beef

Broilers

Chicks

Fryers

Layers

Pullets

Roasters

Ducklings

Goslings

Poults

Toms

Ground Lamb

Lamb Chops

Lamb Heart

Lamb Leg

Lamb Liver

Lamb Shank

Lamb Shoulder

Lamb Stew Meat

Bison Calf

Bison Meat

Bucks

Nannies

Slaughter Goats

Public Health

Compliance

To apply, mail your completed application to 
MARBIDCO Programs
1410 Forest Drive, Suite 21
Annapolis, MD 21403

Basic application requirements:
- Completed application form (please do not send binders)
- Evidence of matching funds
- Tax returns (including all Schedules for most recent past year)
- Detailed business plan 
- Agree to site inspection prior to final approval
- If awarded must also agree to site inspections during construction phase of project


Once per year, MARBIDCO offers grants of between $2,500 and $10,000 distributed on a competitive basis for value added processing capital&#x2004;asset projects. Eligible applicants must be a crop or livestock producer or processor, agricultural cooperative, seafood processor, or primary or secondary timber products processor, and have been in business for a minimum of two years. In addition, applicants must be making a product that is “value added.”


Maryland Value Added Producer Grant – Capital Assets Option (MVAPG–CAO) program is designed to encourage farms and other rural businesses wanting to expand or diversify their operations through value added processing to purchase equipment or construct facilities.



Once per year, MARBIDCO offers grants of between $2,500 and $10,000 distributed on a competitive basis for value added processing capital asset projects. Eligible applicants must be a crop or livestock producer or processor, agricultural cooperative, seafood processor, or primary or secondary timber products processor, and have been in business for a minimum of two years. In addition, applicants must be making a product that is “value added.”

Maryland Value Added Producer Grant – Capital Assets Option (MVAPG–CAO) program is designed to encourage farms and other rural businesses wanting to expand or diversify their operations through value added processing to purchase equipment or construct facilities.

Eligible applicants must be a crop or livestock producer or processor, agricultural cooperative, seafood processor, or primary or secondary timber products processor, and have been in business for a minimum of two years.

In addition, applicants must be making a product that is “value added.” A product that is value added has in incremental value realized by the producer as a result of:
1. Change in physical state;
2. Differentiated production or marketing;
3. Product segregation; or
4. Economic benefit realized from the production of farm- or ranch-based renewable energy.

Eligible Expenses:

Eligible expenses are capital assets which will help farmers, forest product operations and seafood processors to expand or diversify their business operations. Examples include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Production buildings and major fixtures
- Livestock or seafood processing facilities
- Fruit, vegetable or timber processing facilities
- Creamery production equipment
- Manure digesters
- Optimization systems for maximizing fiber yield recovery
- Dry kilns, shavings mills, sawdust dryers and in-woods chippers

Ineligible expenses are those not specifically stated under eligible expenses, such as, but not limited to, the following:
- Any expense incurred prior to Thursday, September 26, 2019.
- Tractors, combines, sprayers or similar common farm implements and attachments thereto
- Any self-propelled vehicles (except certain vehicles used in timber processing)
- Property acquisition costs
- Mortgage refinancing
- Cost of borrowing (e.g., points and other fees)
- Site plan and construction permits
- Wages paid to applicant or employees, or applicant or employee training costs
- Solar or wind energy projects
- Furnishings, fixtures or equipment considered personal (non-business) property
- Machine storage, ancillary workshops, housing, classrooms, etc.
- Any portion of expense for which the applicant pays a contractor in merchandise or service in lieu of cash
- Attorney’s fees and consultants’ fees
- Fees and/or costs not consistent with eligible costs

List of Maryland Agriculture & Resource-Based Industry Development Corporation (MARBIDCO) Funding Opportunities