Northwest and Rocky Mountain USDA Regional Food Business Center - Business Builder Grant Programs
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Overview

The Business Builder Grants Program, part of the USDA’s network of Regional Food Business Centers (RFBCs), is designed to support a more resilient and competitive food system by offering financial aid and technical assistance to small- and mid-sized producers. These grants aim to enhance business viability and access to local and regional markets, with a particular focus on underserved and underinvested farmers and food enterprises.

Each RFBC tailors its grant programs to meet regional needs, and the Northwest and Rocky Mountain RFBC supports six states: Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming. The program emphasizes four key priorities: expanding food entrepreneurs, developing climate-smart agricultural markets, building meat supply chain capacity, and improving infrastructure investments.

To view the grant guidelines and priorities of the Northwest and Rocky Mountain USDA Regional Food Business Center, please visit our website at: https://nwrockymountainregionalfoodbusiness.com/biz-builder/

Some Key Information about Business Builder Grants:

  • UEI requirement: To receive a Business Builder grant, a business must be a legal entity and have a Unique Identification Number (UEI).
  • No match or cost-share is required.
  • Reimbursement grants: most Business Builder grants will be paid out to grantees on a reimbursement basis. This means a grantee pays for an expense up front, then submits receipts or other acceptable documentation to the grant program administrators, who review and approve the documentation and then issue payment. We will process payments as quickly as we can, but it may take up to four weeks.
  • Advance payments: Qualified grantees can request advance payments for some costs in their project budgets, including equipment and infrastructure: see the “Advance Payments” section below for details.
  • Taxable income: Business Builder grants are taxable income. Grantees will receive a W-2.
  • $100,000 maximum per business: An individual business may receive multiple Business Builder grants from the NWRM RFBC or other USDA regional food business center, but only up to a total of $100,000. No business may be awarded more than $100,000 in Business Builder grants during the full grant program period (January 2024 – December 2027).
  • Federal funds: Business Builder grants are federal funding, administered through a cooperative agreement between USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service (USDA-AMS) and Colorado State University (CSU), and a legal agreement between CSU and Oregon State University.
  • USDA rules and guidelines: All Business Builder grants and grantees must meet federal rules and guidelines required by USDA-AMS. 
  • Insurance and licensing: Business Builder grantees must agree to follow all state and federal regulations related to licensing and insurance relevant to their products and markets. This includes any new requirements related to new products and markets developed as part of a grant-funded project. Learning these requirements and coming into compliance should be included as a step in all projects.

Questions? Ask our Business Builder team here.