Browse Ambrook’s collection of funding programs by Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA)

1. Contact the grant administrator to find out if your project is eligible.
2. Complete and submit the Dairy Business Planning Grant Application (PDF) or apply online.
3. The application asks for the following information:
    a. Farm summary
    b. Goal of business plan
    c. Professional services you will be using to develop business plan.
    d. Budget of project
4. An MDA review committee will look over your project and decide if it should be funded.

Courtney VanderMey

Grants cover 50 percent of the cost to hire a qualified, independent third party to create a business plan for a dairy operation and/or test for stray voltage. Dairy producers have used these grants to evaluate the feasibility of expanding a dairy, plan environmental upgrades, and create strategies to transfer the operation to a family member or other new owner.



Existing and beginning Minnesota dairy farmers are eligible for this grant.

The cost of services that are not directly related to the improvement and continuance of the dairy farm are ineligible for this grant, such as:
- Nutrition consulting
- Retirement and investment planning
- Tax planning and tax return preparation
- Intergenerational transfer planning that discontinues the dairy enterprise
- Loan origination or documentation fees
- Chattel real estate appraisal
- Crop consulting
- Nutrient management planning – except as required in the business plan
- Veterinary/herd health consulting
- The cost to complete a dairy business planning grant application

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

Grant

Dairy

Butter

Cheese

Milk

Yogurt

Cow Milk

Goat Milk

- Dairy Business Planning Grant Application (PDF)
- Livestock Expansion Loan Program
- Livestock Equipment Loan Program

Legal & Finance

The grant pays 50 percent of the cost to develop a business plan, up to $5,000. Applicant must pay the other 50 percent.

Create an account and apply online here.
Review the Request For Proposals to prepare yourself to apply.

The AGRI Livestock Investment Grant encourages long-term industry development for Minnesota livestock farmers and ranchers by helping them improve, update, and modernize their livestock operation infrastructure and equipment.



Minnesota livestock farmers may apply. Applicants must be:
- in good standing with the state of Minnesota (no back taxes)
- a current Minnesota resident or a business entity that has authorization to farm in Minnesota
- the principal operator of the farm
NOTE: "Livestock" include beef cattle, dairy cattle, swine, poultry, goats, mules, bison, sheep, horses, farmed cervidae (deer), ratitae (flightless birds including emu), and llamas.

Project Eligibility
This grant program reimburses investments in:
1. Buildings or facilities for the production of livestock or livestock products.
2. Development of pasture for use by livestock including, but not limited to, lanes, watering systems, and fences.
3. Equipment for livestock housing, confinement, feeding, and waste management.
The grant will NOT pay for livestock, buying pasture/crop land, animal feed, crop seed, planters, combines, or debt refinancing.

Livestock

Cattle

Pigs

Poultry

Sheep

Specialty Livestock

Beef Cattle

Dairy Cattle

Feeder Cattle

Slaughter Cattle

Barrows

Boars

Feeder Pigs

Hogs

Sows

Chickens

Cornish Hens

Ducks

Geese

Turkey

Ewes

Lambs

Rams

Alpacas

Beefalo

Bison

Buffalo

Caribou

Deer

Emus

Equine

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

Horses

Bucks

Nannies

Slaughter Goats

- 2023 Request for Proposals (PDF)
- How to Fill Out Your Online Application

Facilities

Disaster Relief

Emergency

- Total awards granted total of $1.3 million in Fiscal Year 2023.
- AGRI reimburses 10% of the first $250,000 of an eligible investment.
- For each project, the maximum grant amount available per fiscal year is $25,000.
- Only one grant per project.

Before you apply, read the full Request for Proposals (PDF) for complete details of the program. You can also review the list of past projects and read prior issues of the Greenbook, which contains summaries, findings, and locations of previous grants. Using these resources will help you design a competitive project.

Then, apply through MDA's online application system.
- If you are a new user, you will need to create an account.
- Once you are logged in, select AGRI Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration Grant FY23.

Kelly Anderson

Eric Nooker

MDA Grants Line

The AGRI Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration Grant supports innovative on-farm research and demonstrations. It funds projects that explore sustainable agriculture practices and systems that could make farming more profitable, resource efficient, or personally satisfying. Findings are published in the Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s annual _[Greenbook](https://www.mda.state.mn.us/greenbook)_.



The AGRI Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration Grant supports innovative on-farm research and demonstrations. It funds projects that explore sustainable agriculture practices and systems that could make farming more profitable, resource efficient, or personally satisfying. Findings are published in the Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s annual Greenbook.

Applicant eligibility
Applications from Minnesota farmers receive priority, but the program also funds Minnesota nonprofits and educational organizations that meaningfully involve Minnesota farmers in projects.
Your project must last two to three years and you must be willing to share what you learn with others.
Project eligibility
MDA will fund projects that explore the profitability, energy efficiency, and environmental benefits of sustainable agriculture practices or systems. Projects can include, but are not limited to:
- Practices that increase environmental sustainability and improve soil health
- Conservation tillage and weed management methods
- Novel cover crops and crop rotations
- Input reduction strategies, including nutrient and pesticide management
- On-farm energy production, such as wind, methane, or biomass, or improvements in energy efficiency
- Developing/refining/improving marketing opportunities, including season extension and post-harvest storage and handling
- Novel enterprise diversification, including organic production, using traditional and non-traditional crops and livestock
- Other creative ideas that focus on environmental benefits, energy savings or production, profitability, and/or farmers’ quality of life

- Request for Proposals - Sustainable Agriculture Demonstration Grant 2023
- How to fill out your online application
- Greenbook

Landscape

High Tunnel

Air Quality

Certification

Carbon Capture

Wildlife and Pollinator Habitat

Soil Health

Certified Grassfed

Cover Crops

Trials

Stewardship

Certified Organic

Reduced Tillage

Conservation

Marketing

Regenerative

Read the full Request for Proposals and apply online following these instructions.

If you need the application in an alternative format, contact the program administrator.

Emily Mehr

The AGRI Urban Agriculture Grant Program encourages urban youth agricultural education and urban agriculture community development within city limits of urban or peri-urban areas.


Grants help organizations and communities obtain the materials and services necessary to successfully promote urban youth agricultural education and urban agriculture community development.



The AGRI Urban Agriculture Grant Program encourages urban youth agricultural education and urban agriculture community development within city limits of urban or peri-urban areas.

Grants help organizations and communities obtain the materials and services necessary to successfully promote urban youth agricultural education and urban agriculture community development.

The following groups are eligible to apply:
- For-profit businesses
- Non-profit organizations
- Schools
- Local government entities
- Native American tribal communities

Project Eligibility:

Eligible grant projects include the purchase and installation of equipment; capital expenditures (costs incurred to make physical improvements to or construct a facility); and/or dedicated staff contractor time. Projects must be located in or serve communities that meet one of the following criteria:
- Cities with a population over 5,000 or located within the boundaries of federally recognized tribal land and serving tribal community members, regardless of population size. You'll find a list of eligible cities and tribal areas in the Request for Proposals.

- Request for Proposals - Urban Agriculture Grant FY2023
- How to Fill Out Your Online Application
- FAQs
- Resources for Grantees
- Past Projects

Sonya Borgeson-Bethke

The AGRI Value-Added Grant helps Minnesota processors add value to Minnesota agricultural products by investing in the purchase of equipment, production capacity, market diversification, and market access for value-added products.



Individuals, farmers, businesses, agricultural cooperatives, or local government entities are eligible to apply. You must explain how your project will increase the sales of Minnesota agricultural products and/or increase market access. The program aims to fund projects that impact many farmers.

MDA will prioritize projects that create additional meat or poultry processing capacity, increase food safety to improve marketability, respond to changing market conditions as result of COVID-19, or respond to civil unrest.

MDA is not funding feasibility studies this year.

- Request for Proposals - FY23 Value-Added Grant
- How to Fill Out Your Online Application

HVAC

Lighting

Repairs

Events

Distribution

Diversification

Trade Relief

MDA expects to award a total of $1 million in Fiscal Year 2021. Grants may reimburse up to 25 percent of eligible expenses. The maximum award is $150,000, and the minimum award is $1,000.

Complete the application below according to the instructions.

Submit by email (preferred): mda.bftc@state.mn.us

or by mail to:
Rural Finance Authority 
Minnesota Department of Agriculture 
625 Robert St. N. 
St. Paul, MN 55155

Beginning Farmer Tax Credit Program

The Minnesota Beginning Farmer Tax Credit provides tax credits for the rent or sale of farm land or a variety of farm assets to beginning farmers. This includes incentives for the sale of farm land.



A Beginning Farmer is defined as: 
- A Minnesota resident who is seeking entry, or has entered into farming within the last 10 years 
- A farmer who will provide the majority of the labor and management of the farm that is located in Minnesota 
- Has adequate experience and knowledge of the type of farming for which they seek assistance from the Rural Finance Authority 
- Can provide positive projected earnings statements 
- Is not directly related to the owner of the agricultural asset (This includes parents, grandparents, brothers, sisters, spouses, children, and grandchildren. Legal adoption shall be considered in full effect) 
- Has a net worth that does not exceed the limit provided under section 41B.03, subdivision 3, paragraph (a), clause (2). Currently this limit is $903,000. 
The beginning farmer may need to participate in an approved financial management program. Costs of financial management programs up to a maximum of $1,500 per year (for up to 3 years) may also be eligible for a tax credit. The financial management credit need not be tied to any agricultural asset sale or rental.

A reduction or waiving of fees for meeting a certain criteria.

Discount

- Beginning Farmer Tax Credit Fact Sheet
- Asset Owner Application (2023)
- Beginning Farmer Application (2023)
- Crop Share Calculator

The credit to the agricultural asset owner is as follows: 
- 5% of the lesser of the sale price or fair market value of the agricultural asset up to a maximum of $32,000; 
- 10% of the gross rental income in each of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd years of the rental agreement, up to a maximum of $7,000 per year, or 
- 15% of the cash equivalent of the gross rental income in each of the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd years of a share rent agreement, up to a maximum of $10,000 per year. The agricultural asset owner can claim credits in one of the above categories in a given tax year up to the maximums stated. 

There are two options to apply
1. Email a completed PDF application (available below) to RFA.loans@state.mn.us.
2. Complete the online Minnesota Down Payment Assistance Grant application. No pre-registration or account is required.
Mailable applications may also be requested from the program contacts.

Jenny Heck

Loan Programs

The Minnesota Down Payment Assistance Grant offers up to **$15,000 for qualified farmers purchasing their first farm**. The grant program is administered by the MDA's Rural Finance Authority (RFA) as part of its mission to develop the state’s agricultural resources.



The Minnesota Down Payment Assistance Grant offers up to $15,000 for qualified farmers purchasing their first farm. The grant program is administered by the MDA's Rural Finance Authority (RFA) as part of its mission to develop the state’s agricultural resources.

Eligible Applicants
- Individual (LLCs, partnerships, etc. must apply as individual)
- Minnesota resident
- Earn less than $250,000 annually in gross agricultural sales
- Applicants and their spouses have never owned a farm
- Will provide the majority of labor and management on the farm
- Will farm the land for at least 5 years
- In good standing with the State of Minnesota
- Have not been convicted of a crime related to a state grant agreement
Eligible Purchases
- Farmland or other agricultural real estate (tillable acres, hog barn, commercial greenhouse, etc.)
- Within the borders of Minnesota
- Must close on purchase after application approval and within designated timeframe. This grant cannot be applied retroactively toward purchases that have already closed.

- Information Session
- Request for Proposals (RFP) - Round 2 FY24
- Lottery Process

Native Americans

Español

Women

Socially Disadvantaged

People Of Color

The Minnesota State Legislature approved $1 million for fiscal year 2024 Down Payment Assistance Grants to Minnesota farmers earning less than $250,000 per year in gross agricultural sales. Applications will remain valid for purchases closing within six months after grant approval or until June 30, 2024, whichever is sooner.
The RFA expects to award approximately 66 grants in this funding cycle, dependent on size of grant requests. The RFA will award these grants using a random lottery process, with preference given to emerging farmers. If you are not an emerging farmer, you may still apply. Applications will be accepted from July 1 to July 31, 2023. The RFA will make award decisions in early to mid-August. 

Carefully read the full Request for Proposals (PDF) for eligibility and requirements; then apply online.
If you need this information in an alternative format, please contact the program administrator.

The AGRI Meat, Poultry, Egg, and Milk Processing Grant offers designated grants to facilitate the start-up, modernization, or expansion of meat, poultry, egg, and milk processing businesses. The intent of the program is to increase sales of Minnesota-raised livestock products by investing in equipment and physical improvements that support processing, capacity, market diversification, and market access.



Individuals, farmers, businesses, agricultural cooperatives, non-profits, educational institutions, local governments, and Tribal Governments are eligible to apply.
You must explain how your project will increase the sales of Minnesota-raised livestock products and/or increase market access. This program aims to fund projects that impact many farmers.
MDA will prioritize projects that create additional meat/poultry slaughter capacity in addition to projects that increase access to Kosher/Halal markets.

Eggs

Dried Eggs

Frozen Eggs

Liquid Eggs

Shell Eggs

Farmers Market

Food Systems

Local Food

MDA expect to award up to $1.4 million in Fiscal Year 2023. The minimum award is $1,000 and the maximum award is $150,000.
This grant requires a cash match. For the match:
- You are responsible for 50% of the first $50,000 to receive up to a $25,000 reimbursement.
- For costs after the first $50,000, you are responsible for 75% of the total remaining cost to receive 25% reimbursement, up to a maximum grant award of $150,000.

Apply through MDA's online application system.
- If you are a new user, you will need to create an account.
- Once you are logged in, select New Markets: Marketing Investment Cost-Share Program (July 1, 2022-June 30, 2023).
If this is your first time applying for reimbursement, you must also submit a W-9 (Request for Taxpayer ID and Certification) by either:
- Uploading a completed and signed IRS form W-9 (PDF), or
- Within the application system, completing the online W-9 PowerForm hosted by DocuSign.

Brian Erickson

Jennifer Alexander

The AGRI New Markets Cost-Share Program can help your Minnesota farm or branded food, beverage, or pet food company take advantage of market opportunities through E-commerce, digital and e-mail marketing, Business-to-Business (B2B) tradeshows (virtual and in-person), and store demos.

This year's program combines two previous programs – the _E-Commerce and Digital Marketing Cost-Share_ and the _Wholesale Cost-Share_.

**MDA processes applications as they come in (first-come, first-served) until the application deadline or the funds are gone, whichever is first.** 



The AGRI New Markets Cost-Share Program can help your Minnesota farm or branded food, beverage, or pet food company take advantage of market opportunities through E-commerce, digital and e-mail marketing, Business-to-Business (B2B) tradeshows (virtual and in-person), and store demos.
This year's program combines two previous programs – the E-Commerce and Digital Marketing Cost-Share and the Wholesale Cost-Share.
MDA processes applications as they come in (first-come, first-served) until the application deadline or the funds are gone, whichever is first. 

To apply for either of these programs, your business must be:
- A Minnesota farm, or a branded food, beverage, or pet food making company registered with the Minnesota Secretary of State, 
- A small-to-medium enterprise, which is an entity with fewer than 500 employees, AND
- A current holder of an MDA Food or Feed License or Minnesota Grown License number
You must also agree to:
- Promptly return post-event and follow-up surveys that ask for information including the number of leads generated and sales projections.
- Retain receipts and records for three years and make them available for audit or inspection by the MDA or state auditor on request.

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

Cost Share

- How to Fill Out Your Online Application

These cost-share programs are reimbursed at a rate of 50% of eligible investment made.

List of Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) Funding Opportunities