Browse Ambrook’s collection of grants, loans, discounts, cost shares, easements, and insurance for manufacturing.

Application consists of (1) a letter from the locality's chief elected/appointed official to the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry, and (2) a letter from the business beneficiary, per the AFID guidelines. No online portal; interested businesses should contact their local economic development office or VDACS.

Michele Bridges

Project Manager

The Governor's Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development (AFID) Fund's Facility Grants are a discretionary, performance-based economic-development incentive for agriculture and forestry value-added or processing projects. Grants are awarded to a political subdivision for the benefit of a company, supporting produce companies, dairy/meat/poultry processors, specialty food and beverage manufacturers, greenhouse operations, forest product manufacturers, and aquaculture (e.g., oyster production).



Awarded to political subdivisions (counties, cities, towns) for the benefit of a company; the locality applies, not the business directly. The benefiting facility must produce value-added agricultural or forestal products, with a minimum of 30% of the product grown or produced in Virginia annually. Multiple localities may jointly apply.

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

Grant

Maximum $500,000 per project (may be exceeded for projects of statewide/regional importance). Dollar-for-dollar local match required (may be waived/reduced for statewide/regional-importance projects). Minimum 30% Virginia-grown products required. Performance-based payout split roughly evenly across Virginia-grown purchases, new jobs, and capital investment, with clawback if targets are missed.

Contact the local economic development office or the VDACS Office of Agriculture and Forestry Development; grant amount and terms are determined by the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry and approved by the Governor. Review the AFID Facility Grant Program Guidelines.

Discretionary, performance-based economic development grant from the Governor's Agriculture and Forestry Industries Development (AFID) Fund for agriculture/forestry value-added or processing projects. A facility grant is awarded to a political subdivision for the benefit of a company whose new or expanding facility the grant is critical to; supports agribusinesses of all sizes including produce companies, dairy processors, meat and poultry processors, specialty food and beverage manufacturers, greenhouse operations, forest-product manufacturers, and aquaculture projects.



Awarded to a Virginia political subdivision (locality) for the benefit of a qualifying agribusiness that is establishing or expanding a value-added or processing facility. Interested businesses work through their local economic development office.

Infrastructure

Maximum grant: "The maximum AFID Facility grant allowed to any one project is capped at $500,000. In unique circumstances, this limit may be exceeded for projects that are determined to be of statewide or regional importance." No minimum is published — the amount and terms are set by the Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry and approved by the Governor.

Local match — 1:1, required: "A dollar-for-dollar match, in cash and/or in-kind... from the locality is required for every AFID dollar requested." The match can be in-kind (infrastructure development, fee waivers, or free or reduced-price land or buildings). Previously invested local funds, other government grants, and private contributions do not count. Tobacco Region Opportunity Fund grants may cover up to one-half of the match. The Governor may waive or reduce the match for projects of statewide or regional importance. Matches "generally must be made within three years of the AFID Facility grant award and may not be spread out over more than five years."

Performance-based payout with clawback: grants "are generally paid out on a performance basis" and are not front-end financing. The grant is split into thirds: "AFID Facility grants are broken into 33% for purchase of Virginia grown products, 33% for new jobs and 33% for capital investment." Miss a target in any category and the locality must claw back a proportionate amount. A 100% clawback of all grant funds is triggered if the locality or the Secretary concludes the business cannot meet at least half (50%) of any one of the three targets.

Performance period: "Generally, the performance date will be the date 36 months after the date of award." If the business has not hit 90% of its targets at least 60 calendar days before the performance date, the locality may grant a one-time extension of up to 15 months.

Virginia-grown content: a minimum of 30% of the agricultural or forestal products the facility adds value to must be produced in Virginia on an annual basis in normal production years. Higher percentages earn additional consideration in ranking.

Who holds the grant: the grant goes to the locality (a political subdivision), not to your business. The locality signs a performance agreement with you before it can receive the funds. Work through your local economic development office.

Complete the Agribusiness Bond Program Application (available from SDGOED). Contact the South Dakota Governor's Office of Economic Development.

The purpose of the Agribusiness Bond Program is to assist in the development and expansion of agricultural and business enterprises within the State of&#x2004;South Dakota. The South Dakota Economic Development Finance Authority issues tax-exempt bonds and/or notes which the borrower may sell and use the proceeds to finance qualified projects that meet state and federal requirements. The borrower pays the interest and principal directly back to the purchaser or Trustee. The program enables agricultural businesses involved in manufacturing, including ag processing, to save on interest by using federally tax-exempt bonds for up to $10 million. Use of funds: fixed assets.



The purpose of the Agribusiness Bond Program is to assist in the development and expansion of agricultural and business enterprises within the State of South Dakota. The South Dakota Economic Development Finance Authority issues tax-exempt bonds and/or notes which the borrower may sell and use the proceeds to finance qualified projects that meet state and federal requirements. The borrower pays the interest and principal directly back to the purchaser or Trustee. The program enables agricultural businesses involved in manufacturing, including ag processing, to save on interest by using federally tax-exempt bonds for up to $10 million. Use of funds: fixed assets.

Agricultural and business enterprises within the State of South Dakota, including agricultural businesses involved in manufacturing and ag processing. Projects must meet state and federal requirements. Use of funds: fixed assets.

A payment that must be returned to the provider following specified terms of repayment and interest rate.

Loan

Buildings

Construction

Fencing

Greenhouse

High Tunnel

HVAC

Irrigation

Lighting

Repairs

Storage

Business Plan

Cash Rent

Refinancing

Transition

Succession

What you get: Tax-exempt bond financing, not a grant. "The program enables agricultural businesses involved in manufacturing, including ag processing, to save on interest by using federally tax-exempt bonds for up to $10 million." The benefit to the borrower is the reduced interest rate that comes with the federal tax exemption on the bond interest.

Maximum: $10 million per project.

Use of funds: Fixed assets.

Rate and term: Not set by the state. "Bond purchaser, usually the lender, sets rates and terms." The South Dakota Economic Development Finance Authority issues the tax-exempt bonds and/or notes, and "[t]he borrower pays the interest and principal directly back to the purchaser or Trustee." So your interest rate, amortization and term are negotiated with your lender or bond purchaser, not published by SDGOED.

Conditions: Projects must be qualified projects meeting state and federal requirements (federal tax law governs what qualifies for tax-exempt financing). No issuance fee schedule, minimum bond size, or match requirement is published on the program page.

Apply through the North Carolina Agricultural Finance Authority. The application fee is $500.00 and an origination fee of one percent of the loan amount is assessed. Terms: maximum term will not normally exceed 15 years; variable rate based on the Prime Rate published in the Wall Street Journal. Loan limits: maximum loan approximately $5 million; minimum loan normally $100,000.00.

Sean McKeon

Executive Director

Agribusiness loans, provided by the North Carolina Agricultural Finance Authority (NCAFA), assist agribusinesses in obtaining capital to start up, increase, or make changes to their business. They are designed to provide capital to acquire and build facilities.



North Carolina agribusinesses licensed by the Secretary of State, or a proprietor living in North Carolina; active agricultural businesses in manufacturing, processing, or retail/wholesale servicing the agricultural community, or processing agricultural commodities for sale in general commerce. The applicant must be an individual or business entity located in North Carolina that lacks the current financial strength to obtain sufficient capital to acquire or improve their business.

Loan limits. "Maximum Loan - Approximately $5 million; Minimum Loan - Normally $100,000.00." Both figures are hedged ("approximately," "normally") on NCDA&CS's own page.

Rate and term. "Maximum term will not normally exceed 15 years. Variable rate based on the Prime Rate published in the Wall Street Journal." No fixed-rate option and no spread over Prime is published, so the actual rate has to come from NCAFA directly.

Fees. "The application fee is $500.00. An origination fee will be assessed for one percent of the loan amount." (On a $1M loan that is $10,000 in origination plus the $500 application fee.)

Match / cost share. None — this is a repayable commercial loan, not a grant or cost-share program.

The eligibility screen cuts both ways. The applicant must be an active NC agricultural business ("manufacturing, processing, or retail wholesale servicing the agricultural community or... processing agricultural commodities for sale in general commerce") that "lacks current financial strength to obtain sufficient capital to acquire or improve their business" — so a borrower who already qualifies for conventional bank credit is not the target.

No security requirement is published for this program (unlike NCAFA's Facilities Disaster Loans, which specify a junior lien).

Verified 2026-09-04.

Firms considering ADBs should contact NCAFA early in the process; NCAFA will advise on how to proceed with a bond issue. Certain steps such as the 'Inducement' should be completed prior to expending money on the project (expenditures prior to inducement may be excluded from the bond issue in certain circumstances). It is highly recommended that the firm discuss letter-of-credit and bond-security requirements with NCAFA before finalizing, to avoid delays.

Agricultural Development Bonds (ADBs) are tax-exempt bonds issued by the North Carolina Agricultural Finance Authority (NCAFA), which has&#x2004;authority under the North Carolina General Statutes (Chapter 122D) to issue bonds for many purposes. ADBs can be used to finance a wide range of agricultural projects that involve 'processing' or 'manufacturing' of agricultural products as long as the projects qualify for federal tax exemption under the Internal Revenue Code, resulting in lower financing costs to the borrower. Examples of ADB financings include cotton gins, feed mills, meat processing facilities, and agricultural waste to produce green energy. ADBs cannot be used for refinancing.



Agricultural Development Bonds (ADBs) are tax-exempt bonds issued by the North Carolina Agricultural Finance Authority (NCAFA), which has authority under the North Carolina General Statutes (Chapter 122D) to issue bonds for many purposes. ADBs can be used to finance a wide range of agricultural projects that involve 'processing' or 'manufacturing' of agricultural products as long as the projects qualify for federal tax exemption under the Internal Revenue Code, resulting in lower financing costs to the borrower. Examples of ADB financings include cotton gins, feed mills, meat processing facilities, and agricultural waste to produce green energy. ADBs cannot be used for refinancing.

- Financing is available for projects in North Carolina.
- Firms undertaking agricultural projects that involve processing or manufacturing of agricultural products.
- Projects must qualify for federal tax exemption under the Internal Revenue Code.
- Eligibility under the federal tax code must be determined by bond counsel.
- Projects must be acceptable to NCAFA as an agricultural purpose, even if they qualify as tax-exempt.

Biofuel

Hydro Power

Solar Power

Wind Energy

No bond size limit, interest rate, spread, or issuance fee is published on the program page or elsewhere on the NCAFA site.

What is published: the benefit is the federal tax exemption itself. ADBs "can be used to finance a wide range of agricultural projects that involve 'processing' or 'manufacturing' of agricultural products as long as these projects qualify for federal tax exemption under the Internal Revenue Code. This results in lower financing costs to the borrower." NCAFA's programs page describes its role as "acting as conduit issuer for agribusiness processing, Ag related manufacturing or Ag waste disposal, in order to facilitate lower (tax exempt) interest rates," and notes NCAFA "has statewide bond authority."

Restrictions and process conditions that affect cost:
• ADBs cannot be used for refinancing.
• The "Inducement" step should be completed before money is spent on the project — "expenditures prior to inducement may be subject to exclusion from the bond issue in certain circumstances."
• A letter of credit is normally involved; NCAFA advises discussing its bond-security requirements before agreeing to a final LOC, since failing to do so "may result in delays."
• Eligibility under the federal tax code must be determined by bond counsel, and a project that qualifies as tax exempt may still be rejected by NCAFA as not serving an "agricultural" purpose.

Pricing is set at issuance against the borrower's credit and credit enhancement, so contact NCAFA (Executive Director, 919-664-1740) early for indicative terms.

Discuss your needs with a VEDA lender before applying (802-828-5627 or info@veda.org). Download the Agricultural and Forestry Loan Application or obtain it from VEDA's office.

VEDA / VACC (general)

VEDA created special loan products with subsidized interest rates to meet the working-capital and capital-asset financing needs of Vermont forestry and forest-products businesses, with even deeper discounts for the purchase or refinancing of certain low-impact logging equipment. Administered through the Vermont Agricultural Credit Corporation (VACC).



Businesses in the forest economy, including foresters, loggers, log truckers, biomass producers, sawmills, firewood producers, and wood-product manufacturers, in good standing with all state agencies. Loan proceeds must be used for projects located in Vermont and use forest products at least partially produced in Vermont. Purposes: capital assets (vehicles, machinery, equipment such as log trucks, excavators, feller bunchers, wood processors), operating expenses, seasonal working capital, debt refinancing, and qualifying low-impact logging equipment.

Legal & Finance

Maximum loan is the lesser of 90% of the value of the securing assets or $500,000. Interest is VEDA's fixed or variable Agricultural Loan Rate minus 1% for the first five years, then VEDA's prevailing variable rate. Terms are based on the useful life of assets (typically up to 10 years for equipment, up to 5 years for working-capital lines). Loans are secured by business/personal assets and guaranteed by any owner of 20% or more. Low-impact logging equipment (with LEAP or Master Logger certification) may qualify for up to an $800,000 loan at 2.5% interest, supported by the Clean Water Fund. A commitment fee of 0.5% ($3,500 maximum) applies.

List of Agricultural Funding for Manufacturing