2010 Western Piedmont Region Demonstration Grant Program - Information and Guidelines
Application forms are provided at the end of this page. DEADLINE FOR APPLICATION is DECEMBER 20, 2010. The goal of the Tobacco Communities Reinvestment Fund is to keep farmers in farming and maintain the economic base of North Carolina’s rural communities. The Reinvestment Fund aims to assist farmers and rural communities to develop new sources of agricultural income through provision of cost-share grants. The Reinvestment Fund will make two types of demonstration awards: Producer Grant Awards of up to $10,000 for individuals and Community Grant Awards of up to $30,000 for collaborative farmer projects. The Tobacco Communities Reinvestment Fund will make cost-share demonstration grants to farmers, farm organizations, and community groups in the Western Piedmont Region of North Carolina, which includes Alexander, Alleghany, Anson, Ashe, Burke, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Catawba, Cleveland, Davidson, Forsyth, Gaston, Guilford, Ireell, Lincoln, Mecklinburg, Rowan, Rutherford, Stanly, Stokes, Surry, Union, Wilkes, Yadkin, Davie, Rockingham. Tight margins for most commodity crops and changing farm programs provide new challenges for North Carolina farmers. The purpose of the Reinvestment Fund is to help farmers to develop enterprises that allow them to earn more for their products through innovative production, processing, or marketing approaches. The Tobacco Communities Reinvestment Fund is supported by a grant from the North Carolina Tobacco Trust Fund Commission. Please read the following carefully. ELIGIBILITY Qualifying PRODUCERS must be farmers, who are actively engaged in full or part-time farming in the Western Piedmont Region. Priority is given to farmers who earned a significant portion of their income from tobacco at the time of the Master Settlement Agreement (1997-1998) and to projects that create an opportunity for a new generation of farmers. Qualifying COMMUNITY GROUPS must include qualifying farmers from the Western Piedmontl Region, AND farmers must be active in the leadership of the group. Groups of farmers, farm coops, farmer associations, churches, local business, civic organizations, or combinations of these are eligible and encouraged to apply. Eligible PROJECTS are those that: have a likelihood of generating new farm income; establish new markets for local products and services; develop new uses for greenhouses; add value to existing farm products by processing, packaging or marketing in a special way; make new use of tobacco facilities and equipment; maintain or create quality employment, including self-employment or opportunities for home-based businesses; make optimal use of on-farm and natural resources. View descriptions of current projects. Attention: Please indicate on the front cover of the application packet the percentage of income that you derived from tobacco at the time of the MSA and whether or not your project creates an opportunity for a new generation of farmers. IMPORTANT DATES! Early Bird Deadline - November 30, 2010 APPLICATION Tobacco Communities Reinvestment Fund Demonstration Grants are awarded on a competitive basis. You must submit an application in order to be considered for a grant. Application materials are available online at www.ncfarmgrants.org or by contacting Field Coordinator Francesca Hyatt(919-323-7587). Completed applications are due in the RAFI-USA office by December 20, 2010 at 5:00 p.m. Please send hardcopies only. No fax or email submissions will be accepted. Proposals arriving after the deadline will not be considered for funding. Applicants may request an advance review of their proposals for feedback by sending in the proposal by the Early Bird deadline, November 30, 2010. RAFI staff will contact applicants if additional information is needed. AWARD DECISIONS The Reinvestment Fund Review Board will review proposals and make recommendations of projects to be funded. Half of the Reinvestment Fund Review Board members are farmers with backgrounds in tobacco and/or income diversification. Farmers who serve on the board are not eligible for grants. Other board members are university researchers, marketing specialists, lending experts, and church and community leaders. PAYMENTS AND REPORTS Contracts will be negotiated with award winners after the award announcement. A first payment of 75% of the grant award will be made after the contracts are signed. A second payment of 20% will be made date (TBA), assuming adequate progress is made toward project goals. The final payment of 5% of the award amount will be made date (TBA), after all project activities have been completed. Mail completed applications to: PROJECT DURATION Grant award winners are required to submit an interim project report and a final project report. COST-SHARE MUST BE LISTED Cost-share is the farmer or community contribution to the project. Cost-share can be either direct in terms of actual cash expenditures or in-kind in terms of labor, equipment, etc. Cost-share must be shown in the budget. Personal funds to buy items that will be used in the new enterprise count as cost-share. Also, you may be able to count certain in-kind contributions, such as the value of the time and labor that you and your cooperators put into the project and fair market value for equipment used in the project. No set cost-share amount is required. OUTREACH Farmers and communities who get grants are required to do outreach to educate others about their projects. This can be done by hosting farm tours or field days, having articles written about the project, or making presentations at a farm or community meeting. RAFI staff will help grant recipients with outreach. COOPERATORS Cooperators are not required but increase the likelihood of success of your project. Cooperators may include other farmers, marketing, and production specialists, extension agents, crop consultants, non-profit organizations, business and other agricultural advisors. The best cooperators bring needed expertise to the project and have a clear role in helping the project succeed. QUESTIONS? If you would like to discuss your project idea or the application process with a RAFI staff member, call 919-323-7587 or email, francesca@rafiusa.org. Grant funds can be used to offset costs for: increased labor (including time you have to put in above your normal work-load and for extra labor you cannot do yourself); specialized equipment; retrofitting and adaptation of existing equipment; supply needs; sampling, analysis, scouting; outreach expenses; to investigate the feasibility of a new project; new marketing, handling or processing operations. Grant funds CANNOT be used for: purchase of livestock; new, general-use farm equipment. Application for Producer Grant Proposals:Download the application and fill-out on your computer. Print-out and sign the completed form. DOWNLOAD Application for Community Collaborative Grant ProposalsDownload the application and fill-out on your computer. Print-out and sign the completed form. DOWNLOAD Trouble opening the application file? Contact Jackie@rafiusa.org or phone: 919-542-1396 ext. 205 Questions? Contact Francesca Hyatt at 919-323-7587 or email: francesca@rafiusa.org |