Specialty Crop Multi-State Grant Program 2026
USDA AMS will fund competitive multi-state partnership projects that enhance the competitiveness of U.S. or U.S. territory-grown specialty crops through activities benefiting two or more states or territories, including food safety, pest and disease, crop research, and marketing/promotion.
RESTRICTED TO: NONPROFITS · STATE LOCAL GOV
⚑ Multi-state partnership required; projects must benefit at least two U.S. states and/or territories. · Includes non-profit entities in the partnership structure. · Award ceiling is $1,000,000.
Unit fits — one characterization, each unit's own rules
| IPPRA | 58 good | portfolio topics: environment, public_health; signature methods: community engaged, policy analysis; social/behavioral work is minor; funds applied research; eligibility unclear — verify in the NOFO |
| Physical Sciences & Engineering (demo) | 40 partial | technical depth: minor; funds applied research |
| Tom Love Innovation Hub | 25 weak | funds applied research; deep-tech content |
Description
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), requests applications for the fiscal year (FY) 2026 Specialty Crop Multi-State Grant Program (SCMP). The SCMP supports collaborative multi-state partnerships to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops through competitively funded projects. A multi-state partnership is a project that implements activities with measurable outcomes that benefit two or more U.S. States and/or Territories along with non-profit entities. The focus is to address regional or national level specialty crop issues, including, but not limited to, food safety, plant pests and disease, research, crop-specific projects addressing common issues, and marketing and promotion. Projects must enhance the competitiveness of U.S. or U.S. territory-grown specialty crops in either domestic or foreign markets.
Apply
View on Grants.gov → CONTACT: Agricultural Marketing Service <sagpgrants@usda.gov>
Proposal brief SEE AN EXAMPLE →
A one-page internal memo: fit assessment, submission requirements, document scaffold, and next steps dated back from the deadline — tailored to your project idea if you add one.
Proposal shell · USDA NIFA conventions SEE A USDA EXAMPLE →
Funder-faithful document skeletons — USDA NIFA's document set with section headings, page limits, reviewer guidance, and writing prompts; add a project idea to get [DRAFT] starter bullets. Download as .md for Word or Overleaf.