Farm Credit Awards $105,000 to Develop and Promote Northeast Agriculture
The Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement Program, a joint effort of Farm Credit East and CoBank, recently provided $105,000 in grant funding to 21 organizations to assist their efforts to encourage youth leadership development, support young and beginning farmer initiatives, promote diversity, equity and inclusion, and advance northeast agriculture, forestry and commercial fishing. Submissions for the next round of grant funding are due by December 1.
Many of the projects receiving these most recent grants are related to promoting youth leadership and educational programs. These programs include Maine Dairy and Nutrition Council’s Adopt a Cow program, Connecticut FFA Association, The New York Holstein Association, The New York Pork Producers’ Youth Swine Scholarship, The North American Intercollegiate Dairy Challenge, Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative’s partnership with New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association, ProDairy Junior Dairy Leader Program, Roots Rising and The University of Vermont Extension’s 4-H Dairy Conference participation.
Other programs receiving grants are supporting beginning farmers, promoting diversity, equity and inclusion, and supporting veterans in agriculture. These programs include Common Ground Farm, KNOX, Inc., Southside Community Land Trust’s Farm Apprentice Program, The Vermont Cheese Council, Volunteers Improving Neighborhood Environments, Inc. and the YMCA of Auburn-Lewiston.
Additionally, grants were awarded to several initiatives to support and promote Northeast agriculture, forestry and fishing, through leadership development and education, economic viability, food infrastructure and security, and sustainability initiatives. These projects include The Cape Cod Cranberry Grower’s Association and Massachusetts Cranberries’ Neighbor to Neighbor project, Cornell Cooperative Extension Onondaga County’s food preservation education, Fun on the Farm, Massachusetts Farmers Markets, Northeast Beef Promotion Initiative producer workshops and The Vermont Foodbank Vermonters Feeding Vermonters program.
The Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement Program was created in 1996 to support projects that promote and enhance the region’s agricultural community. Since inception, the program has provided more than $3.4 million in grant funding to 1,154 projects. Submissions for the next round of grant funding are due by December 1, 2024. Visit FarmCreditEast.com/AgEnhancement to learn more.
Farm Credit East is a member-owned cooperative serving businesses involved in agriculture, forest products and commercial fishing throughout its eight-state territory of New York, New Jersey and New England. In addition to loans and leases, the organization offers a full range of specialized financial services. Farm Credit East is governed by a 16-person board of directors, comprised of 13 customer-elected, one customer appointed and two outside appointed directors. For more information, visit FarmCreditEast.com.