Foreign Agricultural Service
Title | Due Date | Maximum Award Amount | Description |
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Cochran Fellowship Program – U.S. Dry Beans Processing, Promotion, and Marketing for Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras | $140,000.00 | The Cochran Fellowship Program’s Latin America and Caribbean Region is requesting the design and delivery of a training program for a cohort of up to seven Fellows from Costa Rica and seven Fellows from Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras for a total of 14 Fellows.BACKGROUNDSince 1984, the U.S. Congress has made funds available to the Cochran Fellowship Program for training agriculturalists from middle-income countries, emerging markets, and emerging democracies. Training opportunities are for senior and mid-level specialists and administrators working in agricultural trade and policy, agribusiness development, management, animal, plant, and food sciences, extension services, agricultural marketing, and many other areas. Individuals selected for Cochran trainings come from both the public and private sectors. All training occurs in the United States. Training programs are designed and organized in conjunction with U.S. universities, USDA and other government agencies, agribusinesses, and consultants. The Cochran Fellowship Program is part of the United States Department of Agriculture's Foreign Agricultural Service. Since its start in 1984, the Cochran Fellowship Program has provided U.S.-based training for over 19,000 international participants from 126 countries worldwide.SCOPEThe program should provide participants with a thorough understanding of the different varieties and uses of U.S. dry beans. In particular, USDA notes an opportunity to introduce dry bean products as ingredients in processed foods.The program should provide the Fellows an overview of the U.S. dry bean industry showcasing the quality, nutritional value, and versatility of U.S. dry beans. Topics should provide an overview of U.S. dry beans including variety and quality. The program should expose Fellows to the dry bean supply chain, farming practices and technology, storage, processing, grading, and inspection procedures. Additional topics should include U.S. dry bean market trends and practices, use of dry beans, and ingredients for processed products. The training program should include visits to farms, processing facilities, and retailers as well as a meeting with the U.S. Dry Bean Export Council. The program should occur in the Spring in time for Fellows to observe the dry bean planting season. The objective of the program is to educate the Fellows on U.S. dry beans, their varieties, and their uses. The goal of the program is to increase the Fellows’ capacity for understanding applications of agricultural research, extension, and teaching; and to increase trade linkages between Costa Rica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and the United States.LEARNING OBJECTIVESThe recipient will ensure that the Fellows increase their knowledge in the following areas:• Production and supply chain• Dry bean varieties• Quality specifications• Nutritional value of U.S. dry beans• Using dry beans as ingredients• Dry bean consumer products• Market and retail trends• New product development https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=344397 |
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FY 2022 FFPr Limited Merit Based NOFO | $3,500,000.00 | Program OverviewThe Food for Progress Program (FFPr) assists developing and emerging countriesstrengthen their agricultural sectors. U.S. agricultural commodities are provided toeligible entities as part of the agreement awards, which are then monetized inlocal and/or regional markets. These proceeds are used to implement agricultural,economic development projects.Program ObjectivesThe FFPr program has two principal objectives:To improve agricultural productivity; andTo expand trade of agricultural products.Program PrioritiesThe program funding priorities of this NOFO are to support active FFPragreements through a limited competitive process with current year commodityfunds. Freight funds are not available under this Limited Merit Based NOFO.Applicants would only be able to utilize remaining freight funds in their existingaward. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=342552 |
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Upgrading and Improving the Use of Feed Ration Formulation Software in Cambodia, Laos and Nigeria | $150,000.00 | Program OverviewThe use of advanced technologies in animal production has spurred impressive yields as management decisions have conventionally been focused to improve efficiency, reducing costs, and maximizing profit at the farm level. This approach will continue to translate into growing productivity to fulfill the demands of meat, milk, and eggs of increasing human population, which will also increase GHG emissions, especially in developed countries. U.S. technology that uses a ration formulation software can significantly improve livestock farming productions by integrating locally available ingredients in local language while reducing GHG emissions.USDA has supported the University of California, Davis, to develop and adapt a livestock feed ration formulation software for a variety of international contexts, including the development of a national feed and forage library database, which also included data on use of premium feed or feed additives, and making the software program available in local languages. Project activities include developing feed ration formulation software, Taurus or PC Dairy, for Cambodia, Laos and Nigeria. The software is a modification of a package of computer programs for formulating and analyzing rations for beef and dairy cattle. Both software programs run on Windows 95 and above. The program comes with an extensive feed library and allows formulation and evaluation of rations for various classes of beef cattle, as well as creating user selected summarization printouts. Locally available feed chemical composition will be integrated into the software depending on the availability of the information. The software programs also include an output of an estimate of GHG emissions based on Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) recommendations. The calculation methodology for GHG is adjusted based on the production system and type of cattle in each target country. The estimates are used for national inventory with additional information of number of cattle.This proposed follow-on project will improve the use of this software in the context of Cambodia, Laos, and Nigeria; in order to realize increased productivity and yield in livestock sector, and reduced greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In particular, it is expected to include:1. Mobile App Development:A development of a national feed and forage library database, which also includes data on use of premium feed or feed additives ration is currently under development in local languages in each country (Cambodia, Laos and Nigeria). As the existing application is limited to PCs, adoption and use can be facilitated through a mobile phone app for the targeted countries, and for subsequent trainings to be held with relevant stakeholders; and2. Training for the feed ration formulation software and app utilization. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=342534 |
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Supporting Ukrainian Animal Health and Food Safety | $291,000.00 | Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked and unjustified attack on Ukraine and its people is taking a devastating human toll – with lives tragically lost, families broken apart and displaced, and communities and cities destroyed. Among the consequences of this invasion are increasing food safety risks due to weakened controls on animal diseases. With limited access to veterinary medicines, livestock producers are forced to turn to other measures to try and ensure a safe food supply. The conflict also changes migratory pattern of wild animals, which will likely continue to interact with animals on small and medium size farms, all of which require an active monitoring and testing process to ensure that wild animal diseases are contained and controlled.In addition, USDA notes that African Swine Fever (ASF) is currently endemic to Ukraine. Preventing and monitoring the spread of ASF is vital toward protecting animal health and food safety not just in Ukraine, but globally.In response, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA/FAS) seeks to promote technical support to Ukrainian industry on how to detect and mitigate animal health diseases and prevent, if applicable, their introduction into the food supply. This should include working across the entire supply chain, to ensure that the food supply is not contaminated after slaughter as well. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=342482 |
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Kenya Livestock Valur Chain Research and Analysis | $200,000.00 | Please see NOFO in the Related Documents tab. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=342488 |
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Support Country Action Planning to Transform and Strengthen the Resilience of Food Systems | $300,000.00 | BackgroundThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides leadership on food, water, agriculture, natural resources, rural development, nutrition, and related issues based on public policy, the best available science, and effective management. Within USDA, the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) provides technical agricultural assistance to foreign countries to make agricultural policy decisions based on evidence, science, and international rules and standards for safe, sustainable trade and food security. USDA’s extensive science and technology enterprise, including research, education and extension, result in innovations that support a safe, sustainable, and competitive U.S. food system with co-benefits that span the globe.FAS seeks to support a variety of international programming related to food security, the effects of climate change, and resilience through existing or new project-specific agreements with variety of partners, including USAID, the U.S. Department of State, and other federal agencies, and in collaboration with public and private-sector stakeholders and partners.Feed the Future (FtF) is the U.S. Government’s interagency global food security program, authorized and funded at approximately $1 billion per year under the Global Food Security Act (GFSA), guided by the Global Food Security Strategy (GFSS). USDA is one of the U.S. Government agencies in FtF and provides support to FtF through technical advice and analysis, in part by drawing expertise from primarily from the USDA community of USDA technical agencies and land grant universities.ScopeUSDA seeks to support applied regionally- or country-specific research and analysis in food and agricultural systems, and expert consultations in support of the initiation, development, revision or renewal of Feed the Future country action plans and strategies to improve food security and nutrition outcomes in the 20 Feed the Future countries.The recipient of this award will be part of the USDA/FAS-led effort to provide regionally- or country-specific research- and analysis-based food and agricultural systems expert consultations for initiating, developing, revising, or renewing their country action plans or strategies for implementing the U.S Government’s Feed the Future program. As such, specific studies, analyses, assessments, etc. will be identified and determined collaboratively after award.The recipient will assemble teams of experts who will support the development of action plans and strategies that transform and strengthen the resilience of food systems as well as enable the Feed the Future program to meet its objectives.Through this activity, USDA seems to achieve the following three outcomes:• Engaging regionally- or country-specific technical expertise in food and agricultural systems and other areas of food and agricultural sciences that can be used in developing action plans and strategies to reduce food insecurity.• Improving understanding of circumstances through research and analyses, in consultation with partners including U.S. Government personnel, by addressing research questions relevant to developing and implementing strategies and action plans to achieve the objectives of Feed the Future.• Publish and otherwise disseminate written reports and other information products based on the recipient’s research and analyses to support the country strategies and plans, and that can use in explaining FtF strategies and plans. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=342464 |
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Practical Approaches to Circularity in US-EU Food and Agricultural Trade | $150,000.00 | Program Description, Objectives, and PrioritiesIndividual firms, industries, and national regulatory bodies take different approaches towards thesame goals of sustainability and circularity for the production and trade in food and agriculturalproducts. Emerging sustainability regulations require understanding and adaptation byagribusiness, in order to maintain agricultural trade flows.This initiative will support the design, plan, and implementation of workshops and seminars toinform stakeholders, regulators, and policymakers on scientific and technical options to addresschallenges arising from the implementation of new regulatory mandates on sustainability andcircular economy themes such as plastic packaging bans, farm to fork traceability, ecolabeling,recycled food contact material certification, reverse supply chains for reusable packaging, anddeforestation-free supply chains.There is no consensus or internationally recognized standard on how life cycle analysis or otherforms of scientific analysis should be conducted to assess environmental impacts of food andbeverage products. Accordingly, this provides an opportunity for U.S. agricultural research andtechnology to be better considered in such analyses.USDA anticipates these workshops and seminars would be most impactful on the margins ofinternational trade shows and similar pre-planned gatherings of stakeholders, in which U.S. andEU stakeholders and government officials would exchange perspectives on how sustainabilityobjectives can be met in a balanced manner without restricting trade or imposing unreasonablecosts on producers or consumers.These activities could showcase the role of U.S. agricultural research in support of broaderglobal sustainability agendas, including the Collaborative Platform on Agriculture (CPA), whichis a new platform for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the EU Directorate General forAgriculture and Rural Development that enhances communication, exchanges knowledge andinformation, and promotes mutual understanding and trust, as the United States and the EU worktogether to address global challenges and achieve common goals on climate change,sustainability, and agri-foods exchanges.ObjectivesActivities should feature speakers and instructors from relevant U.S., EU/EEA, and Europeanresearch institutions, government subject matter experts, and private sector representativesworking on sustainability and circular economy initiatives in the United States and Europe.Participants should have specialized expertise in topics such as innovation for improvedcircularity, sustainable feedstocks, food product traceability, circular and sustainable food andbeverage packaging and logistics.Participants of these workshops and seminars will:(1) improve understanding of practical, transparent and evidence-based approaches toaddress the scientific and technical challenges of implementing sustainability and circulareconomy mandates in international supply chains for food and agricultural products;(2) learn from existing research, best practices, and lessons learned from existing U.S. andEuropean industry practices for enhancing the circularity of food and agricultural supplychains;(3) identify opportunities to provide scientific input on the proposed EU and EU memberstate sustainability initiatives, to ensure that they can be feasibly implemented and do notunduly disrupt or inhibit agricultural trade; and(4) improve understanding of emerging European and EU Member State circular economyregulations, and how to comply with them.PrioritiesThe workshops in the European Union are intended to broaden the current policy and regulatorydiscussions surrounding circular economy initiatives to include a wide range of stakeholdersworking on practical solutions to the scientific and technical challenges of implementing newsystems of sustainable packaging, farm to fork traceability, ecolabeling, and other circulareconomy and sustainability initiatives.These workshops could include side events at fora, such as the October 2022 SIAL Food TradeShow in Paris, meetings of the Agriculture and Environment Committees of the OECD in Paris,and relevant meetings in Brussels. Seminars could also be held in agricultural producing regionsin the EU in collaboration with EU Member State academic and agriculture institutions.The recipient will collaborate closely with USDA offices in Washington, Paris, Brussels, andother EU Member States as appropriate. The recipient is expected to identify appropriate venuesfor activities, developing agendas, recruiting and selecting speakers, managing logistics forspeakers (as necessary), and generating printed materials, such as agendas.Place of PerformanceThe recipient will conduct stakeholder dialogue activities in select EU Member States. Activitiescould also occur within the United States. Events may also be hybrid or virtual if appropriate. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=342302 |
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Strengthening Resilience of Food Systems Against Shocks from Food and Fertilizer Price Hikes | $300,000.00 | BackgroundThe U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) provides leadership on food, water, agriculture, natural resources, rural development, nutrition, and related issues based on public policy, the best available science, and effective management. Within USDA, the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) provides technical agricultural assistance to foreign countries to make agricultural policy decisions based on evidence, science, and international rules and standards for safe, sustainable trade and food security. USDA’s extensive science and technology enterprise, including research, education and extension, result in innovations that support a safe, sustainable, and competitive U.S. food system with co-benefits that span the globe.Vladimir Putin’s unprovoked and unjustified attack on Ukraine and its people is taking a devastating human toll – with lives tragically lost, families broken apart and displaced, and communities and cities destroyed. This created significant disruptions in global food and fertilizer markets. Both front-line countries directly affected by the war and low and middle-income countries are experiencing food and fertilizer price shocks and can benefit from technical assistance to develop responses to these disruptions.FAS seeks to support a variety of international programming related to food security and resilience through existing or new project-specific agreements with variety of partners, including USAID, the U.S. Department of State, and other federal agencies, and in collaboration with public and private-sector stakeholders and partners.ScopeUSDA seeks to support applied regionally- or country-specific research and analysis in food and agricultural systems and provide short-term technical consultants to support low- and middle-income countries affected by food and fertilizer price shocks as a result of the conflict. This support is available to low- and middle-income countries that are directly affected by the war and that receive U.S. Government agricultural development assistance.The recipient of this award will be part of the USDA/FAS-led effort to provide regionally- or country-specific research- and analysis-based food and agricultural systems expert consultations for initiating, developing, revising, or renewing their country action plans or strategies in response to food and fertilizer price hikes as a result of war in Ukraine. As such, specific studies, analyses, assessments, etc. will be identified and determined collaboratively after award.The recipient will assemble teams of experts who will support the development of action plans and strategies in low and middle-income countries that transform and strengthen the resilience of their local food systems to better cope with price shocks.Through this activity, USDA aims to achieve the following outcomes:• Improving understanding of circumstances through research and analyses, in consultation with partners including U.S. Government personnel to address research questions related to food and fertilizer price shocks.• Engaging regionally- or country-specific technical expertise in food and agricultural systems and other areas of food and agricultural sciences that can be used in developing action plans and strategies to reduce food insecurity caused by food and fertilizer price shocks.• Publish and otherwise disseminate written reports and other information products based on the recipient’s research and analyses to support the country strategies and plans. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=342303 |
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FY 2022 FFPr Standing NOFO | $5,000,000.00 | Program OverviewThe FFPr program provides for the donation of U.S. agricultural commodities to developing countries and emerging democracies committed to introducing and expanding free enterprise in the agricultural sector. The commodities are generally sold on the local market, and the proceeds are used to support agricultural development activities.Program ObjectivesThe FFPr program has two principal objectives: • To improve agricultural productivity; and • To expand trade of agricultural products.Program PrioritiesThe program funding priorities of this NOFO are to support active FFPr agreements experiencing monetization shortfalls by providing additional current year commodity and or freight funds. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=341605 |
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FAS International Internship Program | $304,000.00 | The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Foreign Agricultural Services (FAS), will support placement of eligible graduate students with USDA offices overseas, to assist with representing U.S. agricultural interests and increasing trade abroad.BACKGROUNDThe Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) is the foreign affairs arm of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). FAS links U.S. agriculture to the world to enhance export opportunities and global food security for the expansion and growth of U.S. farmers and ranchers. In addition to its Washington, D.C. staff, FAS has a global network of 92 offices covering approximately 175 countries. These offices are staffed by agricultural attachés and locally hired agricultural experts who are the eyes, ears, and voices for U.S. agriculture around the world. FAS staff identify problems, provide practical solutions, and work to advance opportunities for U.S. agriculture and support U.S. foreign policy around the globe.SCOPEIn support of teaching and research in the agricultural sciences, FAS seeks to support the placement of graduate students in USDA offices overseas, to work on assignments related to agricultural analysis, and to enhance trade linkages between eligible countries and agricultural interests in the United States. USDA anticipates an eight (8) week assignment for participants to gain knowledge, skills and abilities at assigned overseas offices, during the summer timeframe.The recipient will manage the IIP for eligible participants, i.e. graduate students or recent graduates with studies in economics, analytics, or related fields. A complete set of expectations for such management is described in Section F, and should be reviewed carefully. https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=341563 |