Office of the Commissioner

The Food and Drug Administration, a sub-agency of the Department of Health and Human Services, awards grants and cooperative agreements to support research, capacity-building, and regulatory science initiatives aligned with FDA's mission to protect and advance public health through food safety, drug efficacy, and medical device oversight. The agency funds academic institutions, research organizations, and specialized entities working on projects that strengthen FDA's scientific foundation and regulatory capabilities.

The FDA has obligated $732.7 million in federal grant funds across 119 awards since 2011, distributed to 86 distinct recipients. Grant activity has declined notably in recent years: the agency awarded 23 grants in 2022, 19 in 2023, 7 in 2024, 8 in 2025, and 1 year-to-date in 2026. The most recent grant award closed on June 1, 2026.

Grant recipient concentration is highly fragmented. Over the last five years, the top five recipients by award count (University of Maryland Baltimore, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, The Beautywell Project, Advanced Cooling Technologies Inc., and Reagan-Udall Foundation for the Food and Drug Administration Inc.) account for 22 percent of recent awards. When measured by federal dollars obligated, the top five recipients account for 11 percent of funding, with University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill leading at $34.1 million across three awards and Regents of the University of Minnesota at $20.5 million across two awards. Academic institutions dominate the recipient base, with universities consistently receiving the largest federal commitments.

The FDA structures its grant portfolio predominantly through Cooperative Agreements, which represent 61 percent of awards (73), with Project Grants comprising 39 percent (46). This mix reflects the agency's emphasis on sustained partnerships and collaborative research over time-limited project-based funding. Cooperative Agreements allow FDA greater involvement in award execution and strategic alignment with regulatory science priorities.

No recent grant opportunities are recorded in the source data.