Practical Farmers of Iowa Produce Safety Cost-Share

Practical Farmers of Iowa offers a cost-share program for specialty crop farmers seeking to make on-farm food safety improvements. Participants receive up to $3,000 reimbursement for on-farm food safety improvements such as walk-in coolers, handwashing stations, harvest totes, packing-area enclosures, wildlife exclusion fencing, produce washing equipment, sanitizers, and third-party GAP certification. Funding was made possible by The Builders Initiative.

• Must be a specialty crop producer in Iowa.

• Must have a PSA Grower Training certificate on the FSMA Produce Safety Rule, or plan to attend one before May 1, 2026.

• Must own or operate a farm business; nonprofit organizations are not eligible.

• Eligible expenses (of $3,000 or more) must be made by May 1, 2026; single-use packaging, disposable items, farmers-market tents, and plant-nutrition water-testing equipment are not eligible.

A flat reimbursement, not a sliding cost-share — you spend first, then get $3,000 back.

• Amount: "The produce safety cost-share offers participants $3,000 in cost-share funds to reimburse eligible expenses for on-farm food safety improvements of $3,000 or more." So there is effectively no percentage cost-share and no partial award — hit $3,000 in qualifying spend and you are reimbursed $3,000.

• Spending deadline: "Eligible expenses must be made by May 1, 2026." You must "Complete at least $3,000 in qualifying purchases... by May 1, 2026."

• What you commit to beyond spending: a 20-minute consultation call, a February kickoff webinar, a payment request form with receipts as proof of purchase, and a program survey.

• Training prerequisite: a PSA Grower Training certificate on the FSMA Produce Safety Rule, or a plan to attend one before May 1, 2026.

• No double-dipping: many eligible items "are also eligible for USDA Farm Service Agency's Food Safety Certification for Specialty Crops Program, but cannot be reimbursed by both programs."

Eligible: walk-in cooler or CoolBot install, pack-shed food-contact surface upgrades, handwashing stations, cleanable harvest totes, portable toilet rental, enclosing a packing area, enclosing growing areas (high tunnels, caterpillar tunnels, row cover), fencing or netting to exclude wildlife, produce washing equipment, sanitizers/applicators/test strips, reusable distribution containers, third-party GAP certification and water testing.

Not eligible: single-use packaging (clamshells, wax boxes, paper bags), disposables (gloves, paper towels), farmers-market tents, and water-testing equipment for plant nutrition. Nonprofits are not eligible — you must own or operate a farm business.

Funding is from The Builders Initiative. Applications for the next round open in fall 2026.

Applications will open in fall 2026. If accepted, participants must complete the qualifying purchases, a 20-minute consultation call, a program kickoff webinar in February, a payment request form with proof of purchase, and a cost-share program survey.