Farmer & Rancher Disaster Resilience Grant Program

During the 2023 Oregon Legislative Session, $2.65 million was allocated to the Oregon Community Food Systems Network (OCFSN) for the Farmer & Rancher Disaster Resilience Grant Program. This essential and nationally unique funding will support Oregon’s small and underserved producers to be more resilient to climate impacts such as heat, smoke and drought.

The first round of open applications for the Farmer & Rancher Disaster Resilience Grant Program has closed.

Check back in the fall of 2024 for details on round two.

This Farmer & Rancher Disaster Resilience Grant Program builds on the successful OCFSN 2022 Farmer and Rancher Disaster Relief Program. This page will be the primary resource for all details on the Grant Program including the Grant Program Guidelines and Request for Proposals.

With guidance from farmers, a diverse group of community members, farmer supporting organizations and OSU extension experts, this program will quickly and fairly distribute these funds to producers across the state to build more on-farm resilience starting in the 2024 farming season.

Funding from these grants is for on-farm disaster resilience projects and plans.

Project categories include:

Irrigation and Water Efficiency
Shading and Cooling
Soil Health Management
Crop Management
Ecosystem Management
Equipment Purchase, Rental or Refurbishment
On-Farm Planning, Monitoring, and Research

Our list of Potential Allowable On-Farm Resilience Strategies highlights the types of projects eligible for funding. This list is not exhaustive and applicants may propose other activities/expenses to increase their resilience to climate related disasters.

Info Session Video

Grant Materials

Grant overview document
OCFSN Farmer & Rancher Disaster Resilience Grant Guidelines
Application Questions
Both small and large grant applications require a simple budget. Use this budget template and follow all instructions on the template. Budgets will be uploaded as part of the application.
Frequently Asked Questions

For any questions about this grant program please email grants@ocfsn.org

Materiales de subvención en español.

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Funding Details

This grant program has small and large funding categories. Applicants cannot apply for both small and large grants in one funding cycle. You must apply for one or the other. If you received a grant in 2024 you cannot apply in 2025, but if you were not awarded in 2024 you can reapply in 2025. Applicants may be awarded partial funding for their disaster resilience project depending on funds availability and Grant Review Committee project assessment.

There is no requirement for matching funds for this grant.
Grant recipients will receive up-front payment.
Grant funds must directly support the grant purpose to improve small farm disaster resilience.
Funding from this grant program may be able to be used for match (also known as cost-share) for federal conservation or other funding. Producers are encouraged to contact local NRCS for FSA offices to see how these funds could be used as a match for federal grants.

This map shows current funding opportunities for Oregon farmers and ranchers to obtain financial assistance from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS).

Funding Categories

These grants are for smaller resilience projects. This grant category may also be a good fit for or a stand-alone component/phase of a larger resilience project. These are lower barrier to access grants with a shorter application.
(Approximately 75 awards in 2024)
Large grants are for more involved/expensive/complex projects that have a significant resilience impact for the small farm or ranch. This grant is the best fit for larger equipment/infrastructure projects that may include planning, shared infrastructure, or coordinating components. These larger grants have a longer application form.
(Approximately 30 Awards in 2024)

Program Timeline

There will be two rounds of funding-- one in 2024 and one in 2025. Our goal is to have all funds distributed to producers before April 30th in 2024 and April 30th in 2025. These application and reporting timelines are the same for the small and large grants.

2024 Program Timeline:

December 18, 2023 - Grant opportunity announced publicly with details on OCFSN website
January 1, 2024 - Grant application period opens
March 1, 2024 - Grant application period closes
April 1, 2024 - Awards announced, applicants complete acceptance form
April 30, 2024 - All funds for 2024 grants delivered
November 1, 2024 - Interim project report completed by grant awardees
March 30, 2025 - Projects completed, final expenditures completed, and all reporting submitted from awardees (reporting may be completed any time before this deadline, earlier reports will help communicating program success to Oregon Legislature)

2025 Program Timeline will be similar to 2024 timeline unless otherwise amended