The service area of the Appalachia Regional Food Business Center, led by Rural Action, Inc.
Huntington, West Virginia, October 22, 2024 – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Appalachia Regional Food Business Center have launched the first cycle of the Business Builder Subawards, making $3.32 million available to small and mid-sized farm and food businesses. These subawards are part of a larger initiative to strengthen the regional food economy and are available to businesses in Ohio, West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and select counties in Pennsylvania, Virginia, and Maryland.
These funds are one of five planned rounds that will run through 2027, supported by the Center’s total allocation of $16 million from USDA. The Center, led by Rural Action, Inc., is one of 12 USDA-established centers providing technical assistance, resource coordination and networking, and financial assistance to food and farm businesses. Grants of up to $100,000 are available to support business expansion and development.
The Business Builder Subawards are divided into two main tracks of reimbursable grants to address different stages of business development:
The Center has enlisted 16 C-TAP providers to offer a range of services such as application assistance, business development, value chain coordination, and processing, aggregation, and distribution (PAD) support. Technical assistance is provided at no cost to applicants, with the goal of ensuring comprehensive support for both new and growing enterprises.
Coalfield Development’s Refresh Appalachia program serves as both a Partner of the Center and a C-TAP.
Eligible applicants include food and farm businesses with gross annual incomes under $1 million, such as small and mid-sized farmers, grocery stores, and value-added producers. Funds can be used for a variety of activities, including staff time, specialized equipment, and supply chain analysis, but cannot be used for primary production costs, construction, or purchasing or leasing real estate. For a complete list of eligible and ineligible expenses, visit Business Builder Sub Awards — Appalachia Regional Food Business Center (appalachiarfbc.org).
Applications for the first cycle are open now and will close on November 1, 2024 at noon, EST. Businesses that are not successful in the first cycle will receive feedback from reviewers and are encouraged to reapply in subsequent rounds. The Center will prioritize projects that benefit distressed or at-risk communities, as determined by the Economic Innovation Group’s Distressed Communities Index.
“The Appalachia Regional Food Business Center and the Business Builder Subawards provide a vital opportunity for Appalachian farm and food businesses to grow and thrive. Through this collaborative work, we are laying the foundation for a more resilient and sustainable regional food economy—one that will benefit both our businesses and our communities for years to come,” said Adam Hudson, Senior Director of Agriculture for Refresh Appalachia.
The Center and USDA’s efforts aim to not only support individual businesses but also foster regional economic development, strengthen local infrastructure, and promote long-term sustainability across the Appalachian food system.
For more information on the Appalachia Regional Food Business Center’s programs and to apply for the Business Builder Subawards, visit www.appalachiarfbc.org.
Coalfield Development is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization headquartered in Wayne County, West Virginia, focused on rebuilding the Appalachian economy from the ground up through incubating and investing in employment-based social enterprises; facilitating professional, personal, and academic development for people facing barriers to employment; and leading and collaborating on community-based revitalization projects.
Refresh Appalachia is an agricultural program of Coalfield Development focused on growing and supporting the regenerative and sustainable agriculture sector in Central Appalachia. Refresh aims to expand agricultural knowledge and opportunities through hands-on training and employment, while strengthening the local agricultural community by building partnerships, offering aggregation and distribution services, organizing community trainings, and creating market opportunities.
Rural Action was founded in 1991 as a 501(C)3 non-profit with the guiding principle that locally-based, sustainable, and inclusive development is the main strategy for building resilient rural Appalachian communities. Rural Action’s mission is to build a more just economy by developing the region’s assets in environmentally, socially, and economically sustainable ways. This is done by focusing on sectors identified as important by our members: food and agriculture, forestry, zero waste and recycling, environmental education, watershed restoration, and energy.
USDA touches the lives of all Americans each day in so many positive ways. In the Biden-Harris Administration, USDA is transforming America’s food system with a greater focus on more resilient local and regional food production, fairer markets for all producers, ensuring access to safe, healthy and nutritious food in all communities, building new markets and streams of income for farmers and producers using climate smart food and forestry practices, making historic investments in infrastructure and clean energy capabilities in rural America, and committing to equity across the Department by removing systemic barriers and building a workforce more representative of America. To learn more, visit www.usda.gov.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
For more information, please contact:
Jess Toon
Manager of Strategic Communications
Coalfield Development
(681) 833-5431
Jtoon(at)coalfield-development.org
www.coalfield-development.org
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Rebuilding the Appalachian economy from the ground up. We believe in developing the potential of Appalachia through the triple bottom line: people, planet, and profit.