Transportation and Marketing

Farmers Market Promotion Program

Fiscal Year 2023

Description of Funded Projects

Number of Grants Awarded: 55

Amount of Funds Awarded: $13,913,230.99

For more information, please visit the grant program's website: 

https://www.ams.usda.gov/services/grants/fmpp 

NOTE: The below project descriptions were provided by the grant recipients.

Alaska 

Recipient: Copper River Fish Market LLC, Cordova, AK. 

District: AK-032

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $499,000.00

Match Amount: $124,750.00

Total Project Amount: $623,750.00

The Vocal-Local Food Collective Project

Copper River Fish Market (CRFM) will launch The Vocal-Local Food Collective, an innovative and easy-touse operational platform that will harness newly available technology to uplift small-food producers by 

amplifying their voice and expanding their market reach to new customers. This platform will include 

educational resources to empower new direct-to-consumer business development, business coaching, 

and reduced operating costs through aggregation and streamlined logistics. Historically isolated 

communities in Alaska will be connected to sales channels and will benefit from a collective level of 

marketing and resource procurement. This project will 1) improve revenue returned to 30 food 

producers by 2026, 2) improve marketing and sales channels for 100 food producers, 3) improve volume 

of value-added food products sold to local markets, and 4) disseminate best practices and lessons 

learned. The Vocal-Local Food Collective will primarily benefit 100 local fishers, seaweed harvesters, 

oyster harvesters, and value-added product creators. Regional consumers, mid-tier value chain actors, 

institutional buyers, and the community at-large will also benefit from the connections and increased 

availability of value-added products created by the project. The project has strong evidence of potential 

long-term growth and builds on CRFM’s goal to assist local seafood producers in creating and selling 

their own value-added products. Most importantly, this project is the first step in a larger plan to 

improve food security in Alaska and lift up communities by increasing access to regional and culturally 

relevant value-added products.
Alabama 

Recipient: Fountain Heights Cooperative LLC, Birmingham, AL. 

District: AL-007

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $464,442.50

Match Amount: $119,023.60

Total Project Amount: $583,466.09

Growing the Fountain Heights CSA: Enhancing Farmer Capacity and Increasing Food Access

Fountain Heights Farms (FHF) is a small-scale farming organization currently working with other smallscale farmers that specialize in producing fresh, healthy, and sustainably-grown produce and valueadded products. Through this project, FHF aims to increase food access, support local food systems, 

expand farmer capacity, and reduce on-farm food waste in Jefferson County, Alabama by increasing the 

size of its Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program from 35-50 shares to 100 shares per season 

and doubling its farmer participation (from 5 to 10). Project collaborators have identified a need to 

expand their direct-to-consumer market channels to increase sales and revenue. This work is anticipated 

to increase the availability of healthy food options to underserved communities in the region.

California 

Recipient: County of Riverside Office of Economic Development, Riverside, CA. 

District: CA-025

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $180,980.00

Match Amount: $45,245.00

Total Project Amount: $226,225.00

Enriching and Nourishing the Agricultural Communities in the Blythe and Palo Verde Valley 

Through this project, the Riverside County Office of Economic Development in partnership with the 

Blythe Chamber of Commerce will improve the economic conditions of the agricultural producers in the 

underserved communities of Blythe and the Palo Verde Valley and their residents. The project focuses 

on developing, operating and expanding a direct producer to consumer Farmers’ Market, to improve 

access to and consumption of locally and regionally produced agricultural goods, provide critical 

business and marketing training programs to increase sales, retain existing jobs and create new jobs, 

respond to the climate crisis and water allocation cuts. The intended beneficiaries are the agricultural 

producers and residents of Blythe and the Palo Verde Valley areas. 
Recipient: Jesus Provides Our Daily Bread, Chico, CA. 

District: CA-001

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $250,000.00

Match Amount: $65,150.00

Total Project Amount: $315,150.00

Harvesting Hope: Addressing Food Insecurity in Butte County, California 

This project aims to increase access and availability of local fruits and vegetables to food insecure Butte 

County residents. The project seeks to develop and expand the capacity of a successful CommunitySupported Agriculture (CSA) Program. The CSA program currently serves Butte County residents with biweekly local produce boxes, with much of the produce cultivated by individuals experiencing 

homelessness, through a holistic vocational training program. Through this project, the grant recipient

will launch a new retail access point for direct-to consumer-sales in a disadvantaged community, expand 

experiential vocational training serving beginning, underserved, and small farmers and drive increased 

consumption of local produce through new educational marketing efforts targeting food-insecure 

consumers. 

Recipient: San Luis Obispo County Community College District dba Cuesta, San Luis Obispo, CA. 

District: CA-024

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $207,046.50

Match Amount: $52,000.00

Total Project Amount: $259,046.50

Expanding Education Access through Farmers' Market Collaboration at Cuesta College

Cuesta College will collaborate with local economic and food production stakeholders to provide a new 

direct-to-consumer market that supports underserved farmers and ranchers and provides expanded 

food access to residents. This project’s purpose is to address accessibility to local food and direct-toconsumer food systems and cultivate regional food economies through collaborative partnerships. 

Activities include a business development plan, and initial implementation for a new farmers' market in 

San Luis Obispo County. The project’s projected impacts include expanded direct-to-consumer market 

opportunities for local farm and ranch operations, increased participation from underrepresented 

producers, and increased access to local food for community residents, particularly those living within or 

adjacent to the designated low-income/low-access area. 

Recipient: Sierra Kings Health Care District, Reedley, CA. 

District: CA-021

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $114,900.00

Match Amount: $69,512.00

Total Project Amount: $184,412.00
Reedley Wellness Farmer’s Market: Creating an Attractive Market to Increase Consumption of 

Local Foods 

The purpose of the Greater Reedley Farm-To-Table Farmer's Market is to bring consumers face-to-face 

with farmers to increase consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables while also providing a low-barrier 

entry point for local farmers to sell produce. This project will establish two annual markets (fall and 

spring) which will include both vendors and food preparation demonstrations. The markets will create a 

low-barrier entry point for small to moderate sized farmers to develop and/or expand their business 

model. Market activities are uniquely designed to increase the consumption of fresh produce as a 

strategy to address the high occurrence of obesity/diabetes in this geographically isolated area where 

rates are roughly 35%, which is significantly higher than California rates of only 25%.

Recipient: Agricultural Institute of Marin, San Rafael, CA. 

District: CA-002

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $499,987.00

Match Amount: $124,996.75

Total Project Amount: $624,983.75

Growing Success: Building Long-Term Success for Farmers Market Participants through 

Technical Assistance, Training, and Marketing Support

The Growing Success project is designed to improve the financial viability of small-scale and socially 

disadvantaged producers participating in the nine certified farmers markets operated by Agricultural 

Institute of Marin (AIM) with the primary goal of expanding farm-direct sales opportunities. The project 

will provide capacity-building training and intensive one-on-one technical assistance to promote a more 

resilient and financially stable local food system in California. AIM will offer an annual in-person 

“Resource Fair” to introduce producers to technical assistance and training resources available through 

the Growing Success project. AIM will manage a team of five partner organizations to deliver intensive 

technical assistance to producers on Farmers Market Operations, Finance, and Sales and Marketing, 

with content informed by farmers and ranchers in focus groups and surveys. Engaging diverse 

communities in farmers markets will increase customer counts and sales for producers while making 

healthy, local food more accessible to multilingual populations who have not traditionally shopped at 

farmers markets. Through these strategies, it is anticipated this project will reach 400 training and 

technical assistance participants, with anticipated increases in sales and crowd counts at AIM’s 

California certified farmers markets.

Recipient: Fresh Approach, Concord, CA. 

District: CA-118

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $424,917.00

Match Amount: $108,177.00

Total Project Amount: $533,094.00
Fostering Inclusivity, Multi-sector Collaboration, and Sustained Engagement to Increase 

Spending at Farmers’ Markets in Contra Costa and Alameda Counties, California.

This project addresses the need to devise community specific, multicultural solutions to make farmers' 

markets across the San Francisco Bay Area more inclusive for recipients of nutrition assistance programs

who can benefit from additional incentives offered at the markets. This project also responds to the 

need for strengthening collaboration among multi-sector partners by forming a working group and 

regular communication channels to implements mutually reinforcing activities to help align 

organizational changes across the region. As a result of the project, visits to farmers’ markets will 

increase, generating additional sales; consistent access to fresh, local food for underserved populations 

will be sustained; the livelihoods of farmers will be enhanced by growing their base of customers; and 

overall community participation and representation will be improved in a space that can foster longterm community flourishing.

Recipient: Mesa Grande Business Development Corporation, Ramona, CA. 

District: CA-050

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $99,600.00

Match Amount: $24,820.00

Total Project Amount: $124,420.00

Marketing Mesa Grande's Tribally Grown Produce

This project will enable the Mesa Grande Business Development Corporation (BDC) to implement a 

previously-completed farm marketing plan; designing and producing essential marketing and 

promotional media; and evaluating marketing and promotion activities conducted as part of the project. 

The primary purpose of the project is to market and promote the produce grown on Mesa Grande's 

Golden Eagle Farm. The tribally grown produce is sold at the farm store, located on-site. The project will 

include result in an increase in web traffic and online sales; an increase in farm visits and onsite sales; 

increased social media engagement; increased revenue from all sales; and measurable progress toward 

the goal of self-sustainability for the tribe's Golden Eagle Farm and its farming operation.

District of Columbia 

Recipient: FreshFarm Markets, Inc., Washington DC.

District: DC-001

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $500,000.00

Match Amount: $125,089.44

Total Project Amount: $625,089.44

Harnessing New Opportunities for Farmers and Communities to Strengthen our Mid-Atlantic 

Regional Food System

This project is poised to innovate to meet the needs and opportunities for direct marketing by 

supporting increased economic sustainability for more than 250 producers through support for farmers 
markets and farm stands. Project activities include growing the customer base and loyalty for local food 

with promotion and education through at-market signage, videos, and websites, and loyalty programs. 

The project will also focus on the development of a sophisticated market tracker platform benefitting 

producers and creating and sustaining vibrant direct producer-to-consumer outlets for low-income/lowaccess communities.

Florida 

Recipient: Historic St. Andrews Waterfront Partnership, Inc., Panama City, FL. 

District: FL-002

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $220,000.00

Match Amount: $55,132.00

Total Project Amount: $275,132.00

"Farm to Town" Initiative 

The Historic St. Andrews Waterfront Partnership, in collaboration with the Panama City Community 

Redevelopment Agency (CRA) and The LEAD Coalition of Bay County, will implement “Farm to Town,” an 

initiative that will solidify an existing local farmers market—The Market at St. Andrews— and the 

proposed new Glenwood Farmers Market as reliable and flourishing resources that improve access to 

fresh, healthy food. This project will launch a new farmers market to serve the Glenwood neighborhood 

of Panama City, classified a food desert, modeled after The Market at St. Andrews. The project will

develop and implement a consumer marketing strategy that aims to increase market visitation while 

ensuring visitors understand the benefits of healthy eating and are prompted to take advantage of the 

markets’ provision of fresh food. The project will also establish a food distribution network that allows 

farms/farmers outside of the conveniently drivable range of Panama City to utilize the St. Andrews and 

Glenwood markets as sales mechanisms for their produce, meats, poultry, and other locally grown 

agricultural products. Ultimately, these activities will further activate public community gathering 

places, secure and grow the base of agricultural producers and growers participating in local farmers 

markets, and improve conditions surrounding the lack of access to fresh, healthy food for those residing 

in the St. Andrews and Glenwood neighborhoods and beyond.

Recipient: City of Tallahassee, Tallahassee, FL. 

District: FL-002

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $51,500.00

Match Amount: $12,880.00

Total Project Amount: $64,380.00

Southside Farmers Market Promotion and Marketing Plan

The goals of this project are to increase awareness of the Southside Farmers Market among southside 

neighborhood residents and encourage more consumers to attend the market and purchase fresh fruits 

and vegetables. The funding will be used to enhance the existing marketing and promotion efforts, in 
addition to expanding marketing and promotion to new efforts. The focus of these efforts will be on 

increasing awareness of the Southside Farmers Market by advertising to motorists and pedestrians on 

high traffic roadways in the 14 Census Block Groups that represent the target area. Expanded efforts will 

also include direct mail and text message advertising to the 18,000 residents that live in the targeted 

area. Promotional partnerships will be pursued with local businesses and non-profits to become 

“Friends of the Southside Farmers Market”

Georgia 

Recipient: West Georgia Farmers' Cooperative, Hamilton, GA. 

District: GA-003

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $309,400.00

Match Amount: $78,903.00

Total Project Amount: $388,303.00

Farmers' Market Expansion program

By increasing the number of markets, West Georgia Farmers’ Cooperative (WGFC), will expand access to 

fresh food in a low-income/low access, rural areas of Georgia. WGFC, is a 120-member multicultural 

coop, comprised of farmers, culinary entrepreneurs, advocates, and consumers. This project expands 

the farmer markets from 2 to 4 in order to increases access to fresh and local produce to low-income 

community members via a partnership with Wholesome Wave Georgia (WWG) and establishes a 

worker-owned cooperative food delivery business. 

Recipient: Hand, Heart, and Soul Project, Inc., Jonesboro, GA. 

District: GA-013

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $74,848.50 

Match Amount: $19,734.84

Total Project Amount: $94,583.35

Clayton County Mobile Market Locally Grown Produce Outreach and Promotion Plan

According to the USDA Economic Research Service (2019), twelve Clayton County census tracts are 

classified as food deserts with low supermarket access and eleven census tracts are low vehicle access. 

Seventy-two percent of Clayton County’s 292,000 residents are Black and 13% are Hispanic (US Census 

Bureau). Hand, Heart, and Soul Project (HHSP) will develop and implement a Mobile Market marketing 

plan that promotes local food products to underserved residents in Clayton County, GA, and design and 

purchase marketing materials for the Mobile Farmers Market. The intended beneficiaries include local 

farmers and Clayton County residents, particularly those living in census tracts identified as low-income 

and low-access (LILA). 
Idaho 

Recipient: ID IND Food Agriculture Restaurant & Beverage, Boise, ID. 

District: ID-002

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $250,000.00

Match Amount: $62,500.00

Total Project Amount: $312,500.00

Building Idaho Food Resiliency: Increasing Direct-To-Consumer Sales and Marketing Assets for 

Farmers and Ranchers

FARE Idaho is a trade association structured around the local food system that represents over 340 food 

and beverage businesses, including over 80 small farmers, ranchers, farmers markets, and livestock 

processors across Idaho. For this project, FARE Idaho will implement strategies for building local food 

supply chains in Idaho that provide the skills, knowledge, and resources to increase small producers’ 

profitability through relationship-building, marketing, and direct sales to chefs, consumers, and 

restaurants and reduce waste. Project activities include providing marketing assistance for a minimum 

of 20 farmers, ranchers, and farmers markets with logos, basic websites, digital assets, and social media 

assistance. The project will hosting a large Field to Fork Festival to connect Idaho producers with Idaho 

chefs, buyers, and consumers to enhance buying relationships with a focus on strengthening the local 

food system. In addition, FARE Idaho will expand use of its recently launched online platform, which 

connects producers and buyers to facilitate sales. Finally, FARE Idaho will hold in-person workshops and 

create accompanying videos on value-added processes including butchering and using whole animals, 

making fresh cheese, bone broth, sausage, and seasonal meal preparations.

Recipient: City of Good, Inc., Boise, ID. 

District: ID-002

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $100,000.00

Match Amount: $25,000.00

Total Project Amount: $125,000.00

Highlighting Growers' Sustainable Practices to Grow our Customer Base.

To grow customer loyalty and increase sales, City of Good (COG) and the Boise Farmers’ Market (BFM) 

will complete a marketing campaign focused on the benefits to consumers of producers’ agricultural 

practices. Few consumers understand the conservation agriculture practices used by BFM growers and 

their multiple positive impacts on individual health and community wellbeing. This project will create 

and distribute a multi-platform promotional campaign highlighting these practices and their benefits. 

Project activities will include audience identification and targeting, designing a targeted multimedia 

advertising campaign, engaging farmers in storytelling, hiring a videographer, distributing content, and 

assessing the impact of the program through campaign metrics and market sales. This project seeks to 

increased awareness of the benefits of regenerative agriculture, increased consumer interest in local 

agricultural products, draw more visitors to markets and increase producer revenue at markets.
Recipient: Sun Valley Institute for Resilience INC, Hailey, ID. 

District: ID-002

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $100,000.00

Match Amount: $42,100.00

Total Project Amount: $142,100.00

Driving Food Purchasing Policies to Increase Direct-to-Consumer Markets and to Champion 

Eating Local in Idaho's Wood River Valley Region

The Wood River Valley's Locally Grown Market Expansion aims to expand a marketing program that 

increases the volume of locally grown, purchased, and consumed foods. The Sun Valley Institute will 

create a local food purchasing policy guide and provide grower-buyer matchmaking services by working 

with local retail, food pantry, and economic development partners. With Institute support, participating 

access points in Blaine County, Idaho, including restaurants, retail stores, non-profit organizations, and 

schools, will implement customized local food purchasing policies. These policies ensure that locally 

grown produce, meat, dairy, beans, and grains from small and mid-scale farmers and ranchers in 

southern Idaho are the primary sources for these entities' food procurement. Physical marketing 

materials, including signs and window stickers, will be provided to promote these access points' local 

food commitments. In addition, the Wood River Valley Locally Grown Guide will include profiles of policy 

adopters. Marketing materials and Guide features will offer residents and visitors easy-to-access, 

understandable, and reliable information on where to purchase locally produced food. By facilitating 

and promoting local access points' procurement policy agreements, the Wood River Valley's Locally 

Grown Market Expansion strengthens the economic viability of local food producers and makes the 

consumer interest in purchasing locally grown food actionable.

Iowa 

Recipient: Central Iowa Shelter & Services, Des Moines, IA. 

District: IA-003

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $456,651.50 

Match Amount: $114,168.00

Total Project Amount: $570,819.50 

Harvest Local: Food Insecurity with Direct-to-Consumer Agri-Hood Produce, Protein, and 

Value-Added Products

Central Iowa Shelter and Services (CISS) has set out to make an impact on the local food system while 

offering opportunities to individuals experiencing homelessness, who disproportionately come from 

underserved, racially diverse and veteran backgrounds.The project includes a substantial value-added 

agriculture and job training program where farmers operate a food truck at local markets and events. 

The truck’s menu features fish tacos sourced from the Agri-Hood and prepared by trainees who are on 

the path to self-sufficiency after experiencing homelessness. This project will include direct-to-consumer 

marketing to boost sales of our produce and protein products as well as food truck items. Marketing 

efforts will increase tourism and local food education opportunities at our Agri-Hood. CISS expects this 
program to generate sales of its Agri-Hood products, which will allow for reinvestment into the project 

so it can continue to be a talent pipeline for beginning farmers and entrepreneurs as well as a source of 

sustainable, accessible, local food for everyone, especially those from underserved communities and in 

the food desert where the Agri-Hood is located.

Recipient: Iowa Valley Resource Conservation and Development, Amana, IA. 

District: IA-001

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $365,384.00

Match Amount: $91,346.00

Total Project Amount: $456,730.00

Expanding Market Access with the Fresh Connect CSA Voucher and Farmer Business Coaching 

Program

Iowa Valley Resource Conservation & Development’s (IVRCD) project will strengthen farmer business 

stability and expand market access with the Fresh Connect Community Supported Agriculture (CSA)

Voucher Program and Farmer Business Coaching Program. CSA Employer Voucher programs in other 

states have reduced barriers for consumers to support farms and also have resulted in an increase of 

fruit and vegetable servings, increase in meal preparation at home and additional local food purchases 

outside of the CSA. Project partners propose to implement a 2-year pilot CSA Voucher program with 200 

University of Iowa employees and 8 CSA farms to measure the impact on stabilizing and growing the CSA 

market for farms and providing new markets for beginning farmers. IVRCD will research and interview 

two existing CSA Voucher Programs and publish a Case Study report and Business Plan for the Voucher 

Program. The Business Coaching Program will expand beginning and underserved farmers’ knowledge of 

their farm’s financial and marketing skills through the 6-month program. The program will use one-onone coaching sessions to help 18 direct market farms improve their business management skills and 

implement a marketing and branding package. The coaching program will improve each farm’s direct 

marketing skills through farmers markets, CSAs, farm stands or other direct market channels.

Recipient: Healthy Harvest of North Iowa, Hampton, IA. 

District: IA-004

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $100,000.00

Match Amount: $25,194.00

Total Project Amount: $125,194.00

Expansion of “Grow.Eat.Play” – A North Iowa Local Food Campaign

This project will review, revise and expand the The North Iowa Grow.Eat.Play (GEP) campaign. While a 

strong base has been developed, a concerted effort is needed to maintain and expand the local food 

marketing effort to reach a wider, more inclusive, audience. The project will work with a Marketing 

Specialist, who has experience promoting local food farmers, to analyze where there have been 

successes and where there is room for improvement. Evidence indicates that small scale farmers, 

beginning farmers and farmers markets in underserved communities need to reach broader audiences. 
The project will consult these stakeholders to assess their needs and focus project efforts. The project 

will develop produce an updated, more comprehensive, regional marketing plan will be developed

including a series of high-quality marketing graphics, short videos, and templates for online and printed 

materials. These resources will be shared with producers for their marketing efforts to increase direct to 

consumers sales.

Kansas 

Recipient: County of Johson, Olathe, KS. 

District: KS-003

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $90,252.80

Match Amount: $23,871.00

Total Project Amount: $114,123.80 

Action Plan to Grow Johnson County’s Farmers Markets 

This project will provide critical data and capacity building needed to build a resilient network of farmers 

markets within Johnson County, KS, and provide a replicable model for statewide enhancement of the 

farmers market sector. The project will be led by Johnson County Department of Health and 

Environment (JCDHE) and the Johnson County Food Policy Council (JCFPC), and will include a number of 

contracted partners. A Project Advisory Board made up of six local Johnson County Farmers Market 

Managers will be convened to guide the work over the project period. Anticipated project outcomes 

include collection of actionable data to accelerate the growth of the farmers market sector in Johnson 

County, development of an Action Plan for market sector enhancement, capacity building support to 

individual markets, and statewide dissemination of the results and model. The project will benefit 10 

farmers markets in Johnson County, 100+ farmer-vendors, thousands of customers, and community 

members who are low-income by supporting local agriculture to expand direct-to-consumer sales of 

fresh, healthy, and local food. The project will also benefit policy makers at municipal, county, and state 

levels by having a better understanding of opportunities and challenges for farmers markets and their 

vendors.

Kentucky 

Recipient: Farm & Market Market Cooperative Association, Inc., Lexington, KY. 

District: KY-006

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $246,094.24 

Match Amount: $69,754.00

Total Project Amount: $315,848.24 

Planning Our Next 50 Years: Capacity-Building & Community Engagement for the Future of 

the Lexington Farmers' Market

The Lexington Farmers’ Market (LFM), an agricultural cooperative based in Lexington, KY and founded in 

1975, serves as a crucial anchor to Kentucky’s local food system, providing five regular markets to the 
Lexington community. Through this project the Lexington Farmers’ Market (LFM) will implement a 

comprehensive capacity-building plan to provide stability for market operations, support the growth of 

the market, and offer a focused framework for gathering and incorporating community input as the 

market’s membership, Board of Directors, and staff determine the market’s next steps and plans for the 

future. The project includes strategic planning, improvements to market operations and administration, 

increased staffing, data collection focused on accessibility and needs of customer community, support 

for vendor recruitment and improved services to current members, marketing and outreach activities in 

collaboration with new and existing partners, and technical assistance for new and prospective 

members. The project will allow the market to ensure continuity of current markets, build capacity and 

plan for sustainable growth, improve marketing, collect data and be responsive to community and 

vendor feedback. Provide better support to producers through market administration and staffing, 

technical support, and strategic planning.

Recipient: Kentucky Center for Agriculture and Rural Development, Elizabethtown, KY. 

District: KY-002

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $425,450.02

Match Amount: $142,017.03

Total Project Amount: $567,467.05

Support for Central Appalachia’s Direct Marketing Farmers

This project will assist farmer’s market producers to diversify and expand their direct-to-consumer 

market channels. This project is a partnership of three organizations in Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee 

that will serve farmers through technical assistance around developing their business, connecting to 

new direct-to-consumer markets, and disseminating tools and best practices to a larger group of Central 

Appalachian farm resource providers. The Kentucky Center for Agriculture and Rural Development will 

employ a Local Food Marketing Coordinator to connect producers to new markets, while Rural Action 

will offer farmers mentorship services, workshops, and professional assistance. Appalachian Resource 

Conservation and Development Council will broaden availability of trainings by professionalizing 

recorded trainings and making them available to a broader producer audience. All trainings will be 

appropriate for Central Appalachian producers and adapted to serve their rural and urban farmers, 

including gaining access to metropolitan markets. The project intends to see 40 new business plans 

created, returning additional revenue to producers, reach 260 stakeholders, and have 26 market access 

points that increase engagement with producers. 

Massachusetts 

Recipient: Trustees of Tufts College, Boston, MA. 

District: MA-007

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $497,397.17

Match Amount: $124,999.99

Total Project Amount: $622,397.17
Expanding Mobile Market Networks and Local Food Purchasing Capacity on Massachusetts's 

North Shore

This project will establish a regional coalition to support new business models and promote locally 

grown food at Massachusetts’ North Shore mobile markets. Project activities will launch a North Shore 

Mobile Market Coalition (NSMMC) to facilitate collaboration, local food purchasing, market promotion, 

and data collection. The project will increase availability of local fruits/vegetables in NSMMC mobile 

markets through new business models, promotional strategies, and local procurement relationships 

between local producers, food hubs, and food access organizations. The project will provide training and 

technical assistance to 30 local/regional farmers and establish new Mobile Market programs in 

underserved areas that connect over 30 beginning producers to new market channels, revenue 

opportunities, and builds community partnerships to expand local food in low-access communities. In 

addition, the project will implement a pilot program to increase availability of prepared meals/meal 

kits/food truck offerings and value-added products through mobile market distribution channels. The 

project will result in a increased cooperation and local food purchasing among 11 organizations, new 

mobile market sites featuring local produce and value-added products, an increase in producers’ sales, 

and improved consumers access fresh, locally grown food.

Maine 

Recipient: Medical Care Development, Inc., Augusta, ME. 

District: ME-001

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $500,000.00

Match Amount: $125,000.00

Total Project Amount: $625,000.00

Training & Technical Assistance to Increase Utilization of Public Benefits at Farmers Markets 

in Lincoln County, Maine

Healthy Lincoln County, in collaboration with local farms, farmers markets, and state-level partners, will 

provide marketing support, training, & technical assistance to increase sales of locally grown, raised, and 

produced foods in Lincoln County, Maine. Project activities will build local farm and farmers market 

capacity to engage shoppers, including thouse utilizing public benefits. The project will engage diverse 

food system stakeholders, including new, beginning, and underserved farmers, to support the

development, expansion, and sustainability of these direct producer-to-consumer market opportunities. 

Among others, the project will support Lincoln County's many small and mid-sized farms, value-added 

food product producers, and farmers market shoppers. Benefits will include new market reach, 

increased sales revenue, and enhanced marketing and administrative skills for local farms and

producers. Consumers will enjoy increased access to locally grown, raised, and produced foods including 

shoppers utilizing pubilc benefits. The project will contribute to more vibrant and inclusive farmers 

markets and local food economy.
Recipient: Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, East Lansing, ME. 

District: ME-002

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $100,000.00

Match Amount: $27,529.59

Total Project Amount: $127,529.59

Quantifying the Economic Impact and Opportunities of Organic Agriculture to Shift Consumer 

Habits

The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association's (MOFGA's) project will develop three studies 

(economic impact report, audience audit, organic language assessment) and three marketing campaigns 

(farmer support, buyer training, consumer awareness). The studies and marketing campaigns will be 

informed by the intended audiences and will broaden markets and resources for Maine farmers as well 

as expand buyer and consumer knowledge and awareness about the importance of local products. 

These activities will benefit farmers, buyers, consumers and stakeholders serving those who experience 

food insecurity. The economic impact report will establish financial benchmarks, which will help farmers 

assess their operations and strategize for broader market access. The report will also inform a farmer 

support campaign by providing farmers with findings and tools to sell more organic products locally. 

Using data from the proposed audience audit and language assessment studies, the project will develop

a buyer training marketing campaign and a consumer awareness marketing campaign to shift 

understanding and purchasing habits of Maine organic products, reduce confusion around labeling, and 

ultimately increase the consumption of Maine organic products. As a result of these studies and 

campaigns community stakeholders will gain technical knowledge about local foods, producers will gain 

knowledge about new market opportunities, and consumers will gain knowledge about local agricultural 

products.

Michigan 

Recipient: Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI. 

District: MI-007

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $499,957.00

Match Amount: $176,918.00

Total Project Amount: $676,875.00

Improving Adoption and Utilization of Metrics and Evidence-Based Marketing at Farmers 

Markets

This project will provide farmers markets in Michigan with technical and human resources to collect and 

analyze data characterizing their market’s social, environmental and economic impact and translate that 

data into a robust marketing campaign to increase market sales and reach communities 

underrepresented among market shoppers. Michigan State University (MSU), in collaboration with the 

University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW) and the Michigan Farmers Market Association (MIFMA) will 

provide partnering markets access to Farm2Facts, a market data collection and reporting toolkit created 

by UW with previous support from the USDA as well as a complimentary data collection toolkit created 
by MIFMA. MSU will training of market volunteers to support collecting data during market season via 

customer and vendor surveys. This data will then be analyzed by MSU and UW to identify 

neighborhoods currently underrepresented by market shoppers. The project team will then collaborate 

with participating market managers to design and distribute a mailer campaign to encourage those 

residents to attend the market in the following season. A second round of data collection will be used to 

assess the success of the marketing campaign. Based on this analysis, as well as manager feedback on 

the user experience of F2F and the MIFMA data collection tool, these resources will be updated for ease 

of use. Further, the findings of this project will be used to update a market manager training program 

conducted annually by MIFMA, with the aim of increasing adoption of data-informed marketing 

strategies across the state of Michigan.

Missouri 

Recipient: Columbia Farmers Market, Inc., Columbia, MO. 

District: MO-004

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $99,889.21

Match Amount: $25,252.61

Total Project Amount: $125,141.82 

Creating Market Access for Beginning Producers in Mid-Missouri.

Through this project, Columbia Farmers Market (CFM) will engage new and beginning vendors in midMissouri to sell at a weekly farmers market. The new “starter” market creates a market access point for 

beginning producers to sell their wares to the mid-Missouri community and gives them the space and 

time to scale-up their production, and to eventually expand to other markets. CFM will recruit new 

vendors and hold vendor resource fairs to teach potential vendors about selling at CFM. Marketing 

resources will be offered to teach vendors about growing their businesses. A marketing firm, 

photographer, and videographer will be contracted to create professional marketing content for paid ad 

spaces and social media promotion to advertise the resource fairs and markets. Through targeted 

marketing and recruitment, this project is anticipated to assist CFM in increasing customer attendance 

resulting in and increase in both the number of vendors and vendor revenue at markets. This project will 

also benefit Columbia Center for Urban Agriculture (CCUA), CFM’s partners at Columbia’s Agriculture 

Park, and the Park as a whole through increased exposure to the urban farming, volunteer, education, 

and charitable work being performed there by CCUA.

Mississippi 

Recipient: Pontotoc County Chamber of Commerce/Main Street Association, Pontotoc, MS. 

District: MS-001

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $63,075.00

Match Amount: $24,040.00

Total Project Amount: $87,115.00
Pontotoc Farmers Market Health and Wellness Initiative: Establishing a community wellness 

hub through promoting and expanding access to locally-produced healthy food

The Pontotoc Farmers Market (PFM) seeks to become a source of information and education regarding 

health benefits of locally produced food. The PFM Health and Wellness Initiative will develop marketing 

strategies for its 29 agricultural producers and 9 cottage food makers that focus on health and wellness 

and that strive to attract and retain agricultural producers.

Training will be provided to vendors about creating healthier options for their value-added products and 

culinary education to consumers promoting healthy foods and recipes. PFM marketing will be 

highlighted by the creation of live feeds on social media and the use of traditional platforms to promote 

local foods along with community wellbeing programs, Heritage Music and Yoga on the Lawn. The 

popularity of the PFM will be utilized to build relationships with local businesses providing more outlets 

for the sale of agricultural products making healthy food more accessible to the community.

Montana 

Recipient: Alternative Energy Resources Organization, Helena, MT. 

District: MT-ALL 

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $478,991.96

Match Amount: $122,091.03 

Total Project Amount: $601,083.00

Expanding Montana Producer-to-Consumer Market Opportunities through Promotion, 

Education, and Technical Assistance

Abundant Montana (AMT) is a statewide program designed to educate consumers about the value of 

local food and where to find it, while simultaneously supporting food and farming enterprises in building 

thoughtful, well-connected, successful businesses by providing affordable promotion, education, and 

marketing technical assistance services. AMT helps build the demand for local food through consumer 

education and helps producers establish new and expanded direct-to-consumer market opportunities.

Through this project, AMT will a) build relationships with/among producers, retailers, and communities 

across MT through presentations, tabling, and value chain coordination events and services, expanding 

demand for and access to locally and regionally produced agricultural products; b) print and distribute 

our annual Local Food Guide, a free, glossy consumer-focused magazine distributed to retail and tourist 

destinations statewide, highlighting MT producers and their market channels, including local food 

retailers and Farmers Markets; and c) develop staff/program expertise in (i) print marketing and 

distribution in MT’s unique geography of separated, small urban centers, and (ii) building lasting 

relationships and recurring customer engagement in a revenue-driven service enterprise.
North Carolina 

Recipient: Davidson County Local Food Network, Inc., Thomasville, NC. 

District: NC-008

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $249,480.00

Match Amount: $62,640.00

Total Project Amount: $312,120.00

Expanding Piedmont Fresh Food Hub in the Piedmont Triad

The Davidson County Local Food Network will expand Piedmont Fresh, a food hub with an online 

ordering system in North Carolina’s Piedmont Triad region, filling a significant gap in the state’s food hub 

network. Piedmont Fresh will build two different food chains. The first will provide fresh produce boxes 

to underserved families during the peak growing season through a network of partner nonprofit 

organizations at no cost to families. The second will sell local foods year-round directly to consumers 

online with pickup locations throughout the region. Over three years, Piedmont Fresh will grow from its 

pilot phase serving several farms, ranches, and value-added agricultural product producers to serve 

numerous vendors. It will grow the number of registered online shoppers and package additional fresh 

produce boxes annually for underserved families by the third year of the project.

North Dakota 

Recipient: FARRMS, Tuttle, ND. 

District: ND-001

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $329,075.00

Match Amount: $82,270.00

Total Project Amount: $411,345.00

Growing a ND Local Food Economy: Producer Education and Support

The (FARRMS) has provided farmer-focused, community led producer education and support for twentythree years. With a history of proven success in growing North Dakota’s local food systems, and a 

network of supportive and engaged partners, FARRMS will educate and prepare local food producers in 

North Dakota to expand capacity and connect them with new and expanded local food markets.

North Dakota’s local food producers are requesting education and support for business planning,

marketing, (especially digital marketing), and expanding capacity to access larger markets. The 

objectives include engaging producers in a local food needs assessment, providing education and 

technical assistance to help producers grow businesses and gain proficiency in online marketing, 

promoting local food through a producer marketing campaign, and connecting local producers with midtier value chains through development of a Scaling Up ND Local Food Markets webinar series. They will 

double sales of locally grown food and agriculture products and expect at least one new producer cooperative to emerge from this work. 
Nebraska 

Recipient: Center for Rural Affairs, Lyons, NE. 

District: NE-003

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $365,284.00

Match Amount: $91,962.00

Total Project Amount: $457,246.00

Strengthening rural farmers markets and increasing producer-to-consumer adaptation of best 

practices in Nebraska and Iowa

Strengthening Rural Farmers Markets in Nebraska and Iowa (SRFM) promotes domestic direct producerto-consumer marketing through a continuation of work accomplished through a Nebraska Extension-led 

2019 FMPP award, Growing Rural Farmers Markets in Nebraska, where the Center for Rural Affairs 

(CFRA) and Buy Fresh Buy Local Nebraska (BFBL) were partners. In this proposal, CFRA, partner and 

subaward recipient BFBL, and collaborator Nebraska Extension, will address rural farmers markets’ 

identified needs for individualized training and technical support in order to grow sales and strengthen 

rural farmers markets. Managers of 11 Nebraska and four southwest Iowa farmers markets will receive 

training on best practices. At least five vendors per market will also receive training improving market 

stall operations, visibility, and attractiveness to customers. To support Nebraska’s growing Latino 

population, trainings will also cover creating an inclusive and bilingual market. Two Latino-led markets 

will be recruited among the total to receive the training and technical assistance, with 

translation/interpretation services offered as needed to access it. Anticipated outcomes of 

Strengthening Rural Farmers Markets in Nebraska and Iowa include greater capacity to improve 

operations and financial success, increased farmer vendor numbers and sales, and increased number of 

bilingual/Spanish-speaking vendors and market customers at target markets. All contribute to the 

enhanced stability, longevity and diversity of rural farmers markets.

New Mexico 

Recipient: National Center for Frontier Communities, Silver City, NM. 

District: NM-002

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $248,282.00

Match Amount: $63,000.00

Total Project Amount: $311,282.00

Frontier Mobile Farmers Market Network: Building on Momentum to Innovate a Remote Food 

System 

The Frontier Food Hub (FFH) will build off its ongoing success and continue to provide innovative food 

system solutions in the remote frontier region of southwest New Mexico by launching a network of 

mobile farmer's markets in communities that have no current local food access and by building capacity 

and business potential amongst regional food producers through proven interventions such as peer-to-
peer learning, the development of market strategy resources and through on-boarding them into the 

NM Approved Supplier program. This project will leverage FFH’s existing operational infrastructure and 

staff expertise to greatly enhance food access and market potential for a vastly underserved region to 

achieve the following goals: 1) Launching a frontier mobile farmers market network to serve at least 4 

new remote communities within the first year and conducting 120 markets by the end of the project 

period. 2) Increasing annual revenue for up to 30 participating local farmers by 10% through the mobile 

farmers market network by the end of the third year. 3) Providing nutrition education, hand-outs, and 

recipes to at least 1,000 individuals annually through the mobile farmers market initiative. 4) Enhancing 

the market potential and food safety knowledge of at least 30 southwest New Mexico farmers by 

incorporating them into the NM Approved Supplier Program, developing marketing strategy resources, 

and holding yearly regional producer meetings to foster better supply chain coordination, with at least 

50% of growers reporting utilizing new markets within three years.

Recipient: Reunity Resources, Santa Fe, NM. 

District: NM-003

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $245,759.79

Match Amount: $61,921.00

Total Project Amount: $307,680.79

Marketing and Expanding Reunity Resources: Becoming a Mid-Tier Value Chain through 

Value-Added Product Creation and Saving Produce Seconds at an Urban Farm in an 

Economically Disadvantaged Community

This project seeks to prepare Reunity and the small farmers it supports at its Farm Stand for an influx of 

new customers expected upon the completion of the multi-use Santa Fe River Walk in 2025. The 

completed River Walk will connect the center of Santa Fe to Agua Fria Village and Reunity Farm, and to 

Santa Fe’s low-income Southside community. Reunity will develop a market feasibility study positioning 

them to take full advantage of the business opportunities provided by the River Walk. This includes 

exploring the expansion of a currently seasonal Farm Stand into a year-round enterprise. A consultant 

will work with small farmers to develop value-added products for sale at our Farm Stand and beyond. 

Reunity plans to launch a new Saving Seconds program, whose goal is to reduce farm waste and develop 

products utilizing imperfect produce. The project is able to leverage Reunity’s infrastructure, including a 

fully-equipped commercial kitchen, to the economic benefit of Reunity and the farmers we support.

Recipient: Hispanic-American Institute, Inc., Rio Rancho, NM. 

District: NM-002

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $476,806.00

Match Amount: $120,120.00

Total Project Amount: $596,926.00
Northwest Puerto Rico Farmers Market Promotion Project 

The Northwest Puerto Rico Farmers Market Promotion Project (NWPRFMPP) is a Community 

Development Training and Technical Assistance (CTA) project providing outreach, training, technical 

assistance and marketing support to farm, ranch and value-added food enterprises in the low-income 

Municipalities of Arecibo, Hatillo, Camuy, Quebradillas, Isabela, Aguadilla, Aguada, and Rincon. The 

NWPRFMPP develops, coordinates and expands direct producer-to-consumer market opportunities for 

at least 100 underserved and socially disadvantaged farmers, ranchers and food producers, and engages 

a diverse group of local stakeholders, including new, beginning, woman, and veteran farmers, to achieve 

a measurable effect on the local food system, increasing total participant sales and creating or 

preserving at least 15 jobs. Spanish-language CTA activity disseminates tools and practices that can be 

adopted by project participants and stakeholders, helps them develop and maintain their direct-toconsumer enterprises, and helps them promote and market their products through various means, 

including www.deliciapr.com, an online marketplace similar to the full-feature marketplace 

www.deliciousnm.org developed by their 2017-2020 LFPP program in New Mexico. 

Recipient: New Mexico Farmers' Marketing Association, Santa Fe, NM. 

District: NM-003

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $500,000.00

Match Amount: $125,000.00

Total Project Amount: $625,000.00

Seeding New Mexico’s Future: Strengthening Markets & Sales in the Local Food System

This project will improve income and economic opportunities for up to 1,500 producers so that the 

state’s local food supply continues to meet demand in all direct-to-consumer market channels, and so 

that farmers’ markets remain viable statewide. The three-year project, managed by the New Mexico 

Farmers’ Marketing Association (NMFMA), will deliver statewide training, technical assistance, and 

marketing support to increase knowledge and skills among our key networks of farmers’ market 

managers, small-scale often historically marginalized producers, and consumers. Project timing is critical 

because training and resources have not kept pace with fluctuations in the farmers’ market landscape 

and new investments in farm to institution and food bank programs. Project deliverables will include 

(but are not limited to): a market manager webinar series/resource library, an annual member 

conference, technical assistance for farmers to adopt new mobile technology for available programs, 

marketing resources including an annual consumer local food guide and social media toolkit for 

managers, a business development toolkit and trainings for producers, food safety training 

communications for Indigenous farmers, and an updated, fully integrated consumer and business-tobusiness website. Expected outcomes include more customers at farmers’ markets, increased farmer 

participation in available mobile technology-based programs, more producers selling to institutions, 

more Indigenous producers participating in food safety training and institutional sales, improved 

engagement by the public and the NMFMA’s membership with the NMFMA’s website, and ultimately 

increased producer ability and desire to grow more food for direct-to-consumer markets.
New York 

Recipient: Cornell Cooperative Extension of Oneida County, Oriskany, NY. 

District: NY-022

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $194,969.20

Match Amount: $70,957.39

Total Project Amount: $265,926.59

Oneida County Public Market (OCPM) Outreach, E-commerce, and Immigrant Inclusion 

Program

The Oneida County Public Market is a year-round produce market established in 2011 in Utica, New 

York. It was created as an economic development initiative with the goal of establishing the first yearround produce market in a community classified as a food desert by the USDA. The market is the 

premier farmers' market in Oneida County, with a mission to draw on the Mohawk Valley region's 

historic, cultural, and agricultural resources to create an atmosphere where vendors, community 

members, and businesses can sell, shop and support locally. The goals and objectives of the Oneida 

County Public Market are to provide a venue for farmers to sell their products directly to consumers, to 

create access to fresh, healthy, and locally grown foods for consumers, to provide health, nutrition, and 

economic benefit to the community, to serve as a catalyst of economic benefit to surrounding 

businesses and venues, and to create and enhance a sense of community, positioning the market as a 

gathering place that fosters community pride and spirit.

The Farmers Market Promotion Program grant will allow the Oneida County Public Market to create a 

welcoming environment for refugee ag businesses and residents of the surrounding community by 

cultural competency and diversity, equity, and inclusion training along with multi language materials and 

signage. It will also allow the market to expand their e-commerce platform to include more farms and ag 

producers that are vendors at the market and that are interested in selling online even if they are not 

vendors of the market.

Recipient: GardenShare, Canton, NY. 

District: NY-021

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $161,134.60

Match Amount: $40,699.00

Total Project Amount: $201,833.60

Building Stronger Communities: Nourishing St. Lawrence County Farmers Markets

Local farmers markets in St. Lawrence County (SLC), NY are an important part of the county’s regional 

food system by providing a communal arena for the direct producer-to consumer relationship. This 

project’s purpose is to establish and implement shared management service for Canton, Gouverneur, 

and Potsdam farmers markets while supporting all SLC farmers markets and producers. Traditionally 

markets have been individually managed by unpaid volunteers at a single location and operating under 

its own guidelines. This autonomous operational model generates constraints that have led to fewer 
market resources, diminishing farmers’ capacity to provide the much-needed fresh food source to their 

communities, and hindering producers’ ability to generate viable sales. A shared management structure 

with a dedicated Farmers Market Coordinator will address various concerns. The development of 

consistent and stable communication, rules and regulations, and market/producer advertising will lead 

to an economic increase for local producers. Furthermore, consumers (adults and youth) will be 

informed about the availability of products during the market season and how to access them beyond 

the local growing period through an on-going marketing strategy involving social media campaigns, 

hands-on activities at markets, e-news, Local Food Guide, and press releases. The project addresses 

opportunities for low-income/qualified individuals to access local food. The promotion and support for 

farmers market incentive program increases the buying power for fresh, healthy, local products and 

expands the producer's customer base. The combined activities will strengthen the local and SLC 

regional food system.

Recipient: Cornell Cooperative Extension Association of Essex County, Lewis, NY. 

District: NY-021

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $499,477.00

Match Amount: $125,107.00

Total Project Amount: $624,584.00

Building Economic Sustainability for Agriculture and Food Systems in the Adirondack Region

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Essex County (CCE Essex) strengthens the agricultural economy in the 

Adirondack region by growing consumer markets through various projects developed in collaboration 

with farmers and community members. CCE Essex leads Adirondack Harvest , a cooperative educational 

marketing platform currently promoting 270 local farms and food businesses, 73 farmers' markets, and 

6 cuisine trails through various online resources as well as in-person events. The region has some of the 

highest populations of new and beginning (35%), young (13%), and female producers in NY (41.5%). 

Adirondack Farm to Institution currently works with 30 institutions across 3 counties, including 19 K-12 

school districts serving over 8,000 students locally sourced food. By creating positive and engaging 

educational content and events which serve as public-facing outreach as well as producer- facing 

resources, we have expanded our reach by 200% over the past 3 years. Through this project set, CCE 

Essex will create and distribute short educational videos, articles, and photo stories and host school field 

trips, special events, and educational children's activities at farmers' markets. Anticipated outcomes are 

to engage and enthuse the public, from community members to tourists, infuse the agricultural 

economy with new consumers, and boost economic resiliency. This work will help small farms become 

more economically viable, invest in climate resilient practices, and ensure farmland protection. Farm 

tours for farmers will serve as peer-to-peer learning events. This work will create more economic 

opportunities for farmers and champion farms that pioneer climate resilient practices.
Recipient: Cornell Cooperative Extension of Broome County, Binghamton, NY. 

District: NY-019

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $97,869.52

Match Amount: $24,973.32

Total Project Amount: $122,842.85

Markets of Broome Target Seniors, Low-Income and Veterans to Leverage Benefits at Farmers 

Markets

This project will further strengthen the five member markets in Broome County through a coordinated 

branding and social media marketing campaign with promotional materials and locally designed 

activities which will increase traffic and sales by three target populations: veterans, low-income 

households and senior citizens. These three groups comprise 53.5% of the population of Broome 

County. As part of the project a marketing plan will be created and implemented with input from the 

member markets. Marketing and promotional materials will also be created, to include: creation of a 

brand, social media toolkit, and social media presence, alongside a twice a year, three-month, social 

media campaigns focused on buy local consumer education and utilizing and leveraging various nutrition 

incentive programs for farmers markets in New York State, and a consumer shopping guide and a 

seasonal farmers market cookbook. These will all aid in buy local consumer education and driving sales 

at farmers markets. Member markets will receive funds to implement local marketing and promotions 

activities to best suit their community’s needs. Pre and post evaluation will improve understanding of

the impact of the marketing campaigns and promotional activities on consumer knowledge, increase in 

repeat visits/sales at the member markets, and increase in farmer sales. Through the marketing 

campaigns and promotional activities, the five member markets will increase access to local, healthy, 

nutritionally-dense, foods and create opportunities for more farmers to sell at farmers markets. Key 

collaborators include the five farmers markets in Broome County (Broome County Regional, Downtown 

Binghamton, Endicott, Vestal & Windsor) who will be engaged in evaluation for the project through 

setting benchmarks for customer traffic, vendor sales and nutrition incentive program redemptions at 

their market, running locally-designed marketing and promotion activities, giving guidance to the 

marketing agency to design the marketing campaign, and implementing the social media toolkit 

designed through the project. 

Recipient: Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County, Watertown, NY. 

District: NY-024

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $100,000.00

Match Amount: $28,286.98

Total Project Amount: $128,286.98

Consolidated Marketing for Seven Jefferson County, New York, Farmers Markets

Cornell Cooperative Extension of Jefferson County (CCEJC) will conduct marketing on behalf of seven 

traditional farmers markets in rural Jefferson County, New York. These small markets, scattered in 

villages and towns throughout a large and geographically diverse county, lack sufficient staffing and 

funds to engage in effective marketing and advertising. Each has struggled to attract customers and to 
recruit and retain farmers. Local consumers have poor awareness of local food outlets, despite the 

annual publication of a local food guide. Newly relocated soldiers and dependents on nearby Fort Drum 

frequently leave the community without ever discovering local markets. This turnkey project will provide 

direct marketing support to the county's traditional farmers markets, with an emphasis on reaching Fort 

Drum residents. Consumer surveys will determine where advertising funds will be most impactful and 

any barriers to market attendance. From this data, a marketing plan will be developed and 

implemented. CCEJC will purchase paid advertising on social media, local radio, television, targeted 

digital advertising and print. Upon launching the advertising campaign, CCEJC staff will track its 

effectiveness through vendor and consumer surveys. Using data gathered during the first market 

season, CCEJC staff will refine the marketing plan prior to the second year of advertising. As part of 

these marketing efforts, CCEJC will offer samples and conduct cooking demonstrations promoting 

products found at local markets - something farms are unable to do due to New York State food safety 

rules that require commercial kitchen licenses.

Recipient: Wildkale.com, Inc., New York, NY. 

District: NY-010

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $74,779.00

Match Amount: $18,695.00

Total Project Amount: $93,474.00

Marketing of an online farm hub to facilitate online direct sales from a new farm hub for 

small farmers in Central NY

The Central New York Online Farm Hub project will market a newly established farm hub that processes 

online sales, aggregates, packages, and ships local food orders with guaranteed overnight delivery to 

customers' homes within a 400-mile radius of the Morrisville farms. The Central New York Online Farm 

Hub project will create an online sales and marketing application to expand the Morrisville and other 

Central NY customer base through online sales and mail orders in a wider geographic area and create 

new sales opportunities that will help local farmers build sustainable businesses. Project activities 

include the, 1) Marketing plan to promote purchasing locally grown farm products through the Central 

New York online farmstand, 2) Branding and building the Central New York Online Farm Hub project 

webstore, 3) Email, and Social Media Content strategies, 4) Influencer marketing plan, including 

recruitment and managing of influencer program and 5) Organizing 10 pop-up mobile markets with in 

person sales venues.

Ohio 

Recipient: Community Food Initiatives, Athens, OH. 

District: OH-012

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $50,579.09

Match Amount: $13,035.00

Total Project Amount: $63614.09. 
Community Food Initiatives Veggie Van Promotion Project

Community Food Initiatives (CFI) Veggie Van project organizes weekly mobile produce markets in 

geographically isolated communities in Athens County, Ohio eight months of the year. CFI works with a 

variety of local growers to stock the Veggie Van and bring their products to small rural communities 

located more than ten miles from the Athens Farmers Market. Veggie Van staff aggregate and transport 

produce from local growers who do not have the resources to travel to additional market sites, helping 

carry their products to new local markets. The project’s goals are to increase the number and diversity 

of customers shopping at the Veggie Van by implementing a locally-appropriate and program-specific 

marketing plan with support from the public library system and the Appalachian Center for Economic 

Networks. CFI will employ a Veggie Van marketing specialist to help increase community interest in 

purchasing locally produced food through developing new marketing materials, providing and 

promoting educational programs, assembling special produce bundles, and featuring “meet your 

farmer” information at Veggie Van markets that share information about growers including the location 

of their farm, what produce they offer for sale, other locations where their products can be purchased, 

and contact information so consumers can reach out directly for additional or future purchases As the 

customer base grows, CFI will work with local producers to expand the products available at the market.

Oklahoma 

Recipient: Cherokee Nation, Tahlequah, OK. 

District: OK-002

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $100,000.00

Match Amount: $25,034.34

Total Project Amount: $125034.35

Creation of the Cherokee Nation Farmers Market Alliance through a collaborative effort with 

local volunteers, producers, and organizations.

The Cherokee Nation will use this grant to identify, define, and analyze the Farmers Markets within the 

Cherokee Nation reservation. With this information, we will form a Cherokee Nation Farmers Market 

Alliance where we will bring together participating Farmers Markets to develop a regional marketing 

plan to increase local producers and consumer access to Farmers Markets. Cherokee Nation will then 

use the grant to implement and promote the Cherokee Nation Farmers Market Alliance throughout the 

Cherokee Nation reservation.

Oregon 

Recipient: Central Coast Food Web, Newport, OR. 

District: OR-004

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $376,104.00

Match Amount: $101,670.00

Total Project Amount: $477,774.00
Building Capacity To Increase Accessibility, Reduce Waste, And Expand Market Opportunity 

For Oregon Seafood Producers

The Central Coast Food Web located in Newport, OR, a seafood stronghold, is positioned to provide the 

connections, services, programming and infrastructure needed to overcome the current limitations of 

our coastal food systems. As a new food hub serving the central coast of Oregon, CCFW will build upon 

the existing partnerships; Yaquina Lab, shared kitchen space; the Oregon Food Hub Network, expanded 

distribution, and; the Ocean Cluster Initiative, coastwide collaboration and outreach, launching a Blue 

Food Training program and creating a support network focused on the regional blue economy.

Complementary to this new program, CCFW can provide low-risk, affordable shared space and 

equipment to (sea)food businesses to do value-added production, turning their catch into in-demand 

products. Through these collaborative activities fishers and producers will be able to capture consumer 

demand for “blue foods” thus boosting the market and retaining dollars in the local economy. With this 

funding, CCFW will make value chain investments needed to link Oregon sustainable seafood to the 

consumers who demand it, bolstering our local blue economy for decades to come.

Pennsylvania 

Recipient: Adagio Health Inc., Pittsburgh, PA. 

District: PA-012

Project Type: Community Development, Training, and Technical Assistance

Award Amount: $336,167.34

Match Amount: $84,054.22

Total Project Amount: $420,221.56

Adagio Health Expanding Access To Farm Fresh Pennsylvania Produce (EAT Farm Fresh PA).

The significant veteran population in Pennsylvania provides a unique opportunity to complement the PA 

Preferred – Homegrown by Heroes program by piloting a farmers market promotion program 

benefitting both Pennsylvania veteran producers and consumers. Recognizing the need for additional 

market access points to reduce barriers for FMNP program recipients and veterans to redeem checks, 

Adagio Health aims to conduct redemption trends and market analyses, feasibility studies, and farmer 

focus groups to identify gaps in access, viability of operating pop-up markets across Pennsylvania, and 

technology integration while enhancing existing Adagio Health market operations and piloting a voucher 

to veterans’ program. Additional assistance, support, and replicable marketing/promotion plans will be 

developed from the results identified through these efforts. EAT Farm Fresh PA focuses on benefiting 

produce farmers, veterans in agriculture, and low-income, high-risk population individuals (seniors, 

veterans, pregnant/postpartum/breastfeeding moms, young children). Project outcomes include 

enhanced revenue streams for produce farmers, improved market access with minimal time-cost 

burden to producers, promotion of PA preferred – Homegrown by Heroes program and increased access 

to fresh, local produce.
Puerto Rico 

Recipient: Growing Puerto Rico, LLC., Humacao, PR. 

District: PR-116

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $54,000.00

Match Amount: $13,500.00

Total Project Amount: $67,500.00

2023-2024 Social Media Marketing and Vendor Promotion for Palmas Farmers Market, 

Puerto Rico

Growing Puerto Rico, LLC. (GPR) project purpose is to support the development, coordination, and 

expansion of direct producer-to-consumer markets in Eastern Puerto Rico. Many farmers and ranchers 

in these areas suffered significant losses, following the devastating impact of Hurricanes on local 

agriculture leaving them struggling to recover and continue their operations. This project will provide a 

platform for local producers to sell their products, promoting sustainable agriculture practices and 

increasing awareness of the importance of buying local, fresh produce. This initiative is essential to 

support the local agriculture sector and contribute to the economic recovery of these underserved 

communities. This public event brings local agriculture producers from around the island directly to a 

dense population of individual, family, and restaurant consumers. Project success will increase the 

number of agricultural producers and consumers attending the market and per-consumer purchasing of 

fresh, locally grown produce. This enhances the local farmers and producers’ ability to earn livable 

incomes from responsible farming and rewards consumers in the local community with increased access 

to fresh, local agricultural products.

Tennessee 

Recipient: Tennessee Association of Farmers Markets, Nashville, TN. 

District: TN-007

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $77,317.00

Match Amount: $20,779.00

Total Project Amount: $98,096.00

Promoting Local Agriculture and Tourism: Establishing a Sustainable Farmers Market Trail in 

Tennessee

Tennessee has over 160 farmers markets and agritourism sites, many united through the membership 

organization of Tennessee Association of Farmers Markets (TAFM). In this project, TAFM seeks to study 

and develop a prototype for a “Tennessee Farmers Market Trail,” similar to our state’s existing wine, 

whisky and history trails. The project includes partnerships with the TN Department of Tourism, TN 

Department of Agriculture, TN Agritourism Association and local chambers of commerce and farmers 

markets. Surveys show about 30% of farmers markets customers are from outside a market’s zip code, 
and many are tourists. A trail would unite markets to increase their visibility as a whole and encourage 

out of town visitors to shop and “eat like a local.”

In year one, TAFM and partners will study farmers market trails in other states like Virginia. TAFM will 

design a prototype trail for the Middle Tennessee region, which includes several USDA low-food, lowaccess areas in Nashville and north into rural areas. TAFM and partners will develop a management plan 

to ensure successful initiation and sustainability of the markets’ relationships along the trail. In year two, 

TAFM will hire a marketing professional to develop a strategy to promote the trail with digital and print 

resources and via local tourism agencies. As the team evaluates the success of this trail, they will include 

lessons learned in their report, with an eye for future expansion into East and West Tennessee regions 

of the state. The project goal is to increase agriculture sales via this tourism angle state-wide. 

Texas 

Recipient: Galveston's Own Farmers Market, Inc., Galveston, TX. 

District: TX-014

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $247,398.00

Match Amount: $62,138.00

Total Project Amount: $309,536.00

“Growing the Good: Expanding Galveston’s Own Farmers Market Operations, Outreach and 

Opportunities for Producer-to-Consumer Education”

This Galveston’s Own Farmers Market (GOFM) project will strengthen the local Texas Gulf Coast food 

system by connecting farmers with buyers, learners with teachers, offer practical business support to 

local producers and build a better-informed, savvy and united local foods community. This project will 

expand GOFM’s market operations, diversify and elevate existing vendor training, recruit new small 

agricultural producers with a focus on underserved growers of color through redeployment of a 

Backyard Growers Cooperative program, implement highly-targeted advertising campaigns and 

consumer-incentive initiatives, and assemble, educate and empower producers, consumers, and 

formal/informal stakeholders from the local foods, agriculture, municipal, economic, food insecurity and 

public health sectors through an innovative conference experience that re-centers local foods and the 

farmers market environment as a public platform for improving quality of life and boosting economic 

vitality for entire communities.

Recipient: Revolving Kitchen - Management, LLC, Garland, TX. 

District: TX-032

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $248,200.00

Match Amount: $88,950.00

Total Project Amount: $337,150.00
Connecting producers to customers in Texas through a scalable virtual food hub and shared 

use model

The project purpose is to improve Revolving Kitchen “Virtual Food Hall” platform. The funding will be 

used to help grow the number of food businesses and local producers able to serve their local 

community directly. This will be achieved by: 1) utilizing lessons learned from the initial Revolving 

Kitchen platform, identify key technology needs that will help grow local direct-to-customer 

opportunities, 2) develop and deploy an updated technology stack to grow direct producer and food 

business opportunities, 3) create a roadmap for replicating Revolving Kitchen that grows the number of 

food businesses and local producers able to serve their local community directly.

Wisconsin 

Recipient: REAP Food Group, Inc, Madison, WI. 

District: WI-002

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $244,820.00

Match Amount: $74,138.00

Total Project Amount: $318,958.00

Growing the Farm Fresh Atlas of Wisconsin into a Comprehensive, State-Wide Resource for 

Producers and Consumers

REAP Food Group, Inc. a Wisconsin-based nonprofit, will expand the Farm Fresh Atlas, an annual print 

and internet guide to sustainable farms, farmers’ markets, grocers, and restaurants, by upgrading the 

technology to support growing the technological capabilities of the Farm Fresh Atlas to better serve the 

needs of farmers and consumers through an innovative marketing platform. Expanding the Farm Fresh 

Atlas to include listings from the entire state of Wisconsin, especially BIPOC, women and new producers, 

and partnering with organizations across Wisconsin to incorporate niche listings into one centralized list 

of producers. Year 1 will focus on implementing the new technology platform in partnership with Taste 

the Local Difference, a local food consulting, media and marketing agency that licenses their technology 

platform to create their own lists of producers, and migrating the existing Atlas listees onto new 

technology. Year 2 grows the platform statewide. Year 3 will complete partnership agreements and 

incorporate partner listings. Project beneficiaries are small producers in Wisconsin and consumers in 

Wisconsin. This project will increase the number of producers listing in the Atlas, increase producers’ 

engagement with the Atlas, inform consumers where to purchase local foods, and increase consumer 

purchase of local foods. Having a statewide, comprehensive resource will connect producers and 

consumers across our entire state, and strengthen the local foods ecosystem in Wisconsin.

Recipient: Foxhead Regenerative Agriculture Project Inc., Green Lake, WI. 

District: WI-006

Project Type: TurnKey Marketing and Promotion

Award Amount: $82,196.00

Match Amount: $21,819.00

Total Project Amount: $104,015.00
Direct to consumer sales and agritourism opportunities for producers in the Upper Fox River 

watershed: a local food and farm network assessment and marketing plans development.

This project assesses the current state of our local food and farm network [LFFN] in 4 counties of 

Wisconsin’s Upper Fox River watershed (Marquette, Fond du Lac, Green Lake, Winnebago) and develops 

opportunities to improve farm-consumer relations and increase sales and consumption of local 

products. We will strengthen our LFFN, making direct-to-consumer farms more economically sustainable 

and paving the way for new small-scale regenerative farmers to get started and succeed. LFFN will

assess producers engaged in direct-to-consumer sales, marketing assistance most needed by farms,

other organizations involved in the LFFN, gaps in production, and options to increase access and

affordability of local products. With the results, LFFN will produce a marketing plan for an online multifarm market and an agritourism business plan, including a regional LFFN brand. To engage other LFFN

stakeholders, the final assessment will be available online, plus we’ll develop an infographic to show the

LFFN components and their social, environmental, and economic benefits. Finally, we’ll produce a LFFN 

webpage for consumers to learn more about our farmers and their products, a local farm map, and a

case study of the project for an upcoming local food book. Beneficiaries include a population of

approximately 320,000, plus farmers and their families, and other LFFN stakeholders. Key collaborators

are University of Wisconsin Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems, Local Foods Consulting, and

MJM Farm Marketing.

West Virginia 

Recipient: Universal Schedule and Booking LLC, Harpers Ferry, WV. 

District: WV-002

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $187,500.00

Match Amount: $62,500.00

Total Project Amount: $250,000.00

Building Capacity to Promote Farmers Markets to Consumers in Regional Areas and 

Leveraging New Marketing & Sales Technology to Increase Producer-to-Consumer Revenue 

Opportunities for Small & Mid-Size

Producer-to-consumer marketing of food continues to take time and resources for small and mid-size 

family farms (SMSFs). The current e-commerce ecosystem does not provide the required economic 

opportunities for SMSFs to allow their voices to be heard, reach consumers, and promote their products 

in a localized, regional community marketplace. Universal Schedule and Booking’s LocalCart® 

marketplace platform provides the venue for promoting and selling products online. The accompanying 

GetawayLocal® mobile app provides the basis to facilitate engagement with agritourism experiences and 

activities in order to curate data points that are needed to advance our patented technologies for 

producer-to-consumer marketing. LocalCart’s one-cart approach will provide: 1) needed analytics to 

better understand the local foods agriculture economy and 2) actionable datapoints that enable more 

targeted and efficient marketing directly to consumers on behalf of small and mid-size farms in a more 

automated and integrated system. This project with partner Larta Institute is directed towards 

developing capacity for marketing automations needed to leverage existing demand and interest in 

farmers markets, produce the types of content about SMSFs, producers, and products that consumers 
want, while developing the infrastructure for collaborative marketing and community newsletters to 

drive engagement of consumers at Farmers Markets in our pilot region and increase access via LocalCart 

to local/regional foods from SMSFs and producers of value-added agricultural products.

Wyoming 

Recipient: Slow Food in the Tetons, Jackson, WY. 

District: WY-001

Project Type: Capacity Building

Award Amount: $96,269.00

Match Amount: $26,334.00

Total Project Amount: $122,603.00

Slow Food Relocation and Expansion Project

Slow Food is building upon its existing local food programs to create a more permanent, vibrant, and 

accessible local food hub in Jackson. Slow Food will relocate its current, summer-only, seasonal Farm 

Stand facility located miles from downtown in an area with poor pedestrian connectivity to a 

centralized, walkable, all-season downtown retail space. Renting a winterized building and expanding 

storage and office space will increase capacity for local growers to store and sell local food in the Farm 

Stand and Online Marketplace programs and facilitate additional community outreach and educational 

programs throughout all four seasons. The project will: 1) expand the number of local food producers 

able to sell products; 2) increase sales of local food; 3) engage a larger portion of the Jackson/Teton 

County community in accessing farm fresh food, including Spanish speakers and those with socioeconomic or other barriers currently inhibiting their participation in Slow Food programming; and 4) 

advance Jackson’s sustainability goals and decrease greenhouse gas emissions by reducing the long 

distance trucking required of local farmers to sell goods and driving required of residents to purchase 

them.