Project Grant 20217003335697
- This Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under the Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (CFDA 10.311) provides $749,891 to the Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center (MAIC), a non-profit organization, to expand their "Aquaculture in Shared Waters" training program in Maine. The program aims to train new, aspiring, and early-stage aquaculture farmers in the state, with a focus on low-cost aquaculture...
- The Maine Aquaculture Association (MAA) was awarded a $126,737.15 Project Grant from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA NIFA) Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP) to deliver services leading Maine's beginning aquaculture farmers to a sustainable business future. The goal of the BFRDP is to help beginning farmers and ranchers enter and improve their successes in farming, ranching, and managing nonindustrial private...
- This Project Grant award, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (CFDA 10.311), provides $749,985 to the Marine and Environmental Research Institute of Pohnpei (MERIP) to increase the number of beginning aquaculture farmers and strengthen the capacity and resiliency of existing beginning aquaculture farmers in the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) and Hawaii. The key products and services to be delivered include: providing technical...
- The University of Maine was awarded $750,000 under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative competitive federal grants program by the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture to establish the Aquaculture Experiential Opportunities for Undergraduate Students program. The five-year project grant will provide applied aquaculture science training and research experiences to 42 undergraduate students from across the U.S. through a hybrid virtual and in-person...
- This federal Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) program (CFDA 10.310), provides $500,000 to the Maine Aquaculture Innovation Center (MAIC) to increase the integration of aquaculture education in Maine's elementary and middle school classrooms. The key objectives are to: (1) Promote educator expertise and implementation of aquaculture sciences in grades 4-8;...
- The University of Maine System was awarded a $750,000 Project Grant from the Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (CFDA 10.310) program. Through this 4-year grant, which commenced on September 1, 2023, the University will develop and implement new learning tools, including virtual field trips and hands-on curricula, focused on aquaculture technology. The project aims to train educators and youth on using these...
- This Cooperative Agreement award from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) under the Sea Grant Support program (CFDA 11.417) aims to better understand growth patterns and business-level decision-making within the U.S. shellfish aquaculture industry. The $892,096 project, running from September 1, 2025 to August 31, 2028, will focus on the states of Massachusetts, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, and Washington, which represent an estimated 70% of U.S. farmed...
- This five-year, $600,000 Project Grant from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA NIFA) Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) program (CFDA 10.310) will fund research at the University of Maine in Orono, Maine to develop metrics for identifying optimal broodstock and predicting offspring quality and performance in Atlantic salmon aquaculture. Specifically, the grant will support work to 1) establish characteristics in broodstock or...
- The Community Shellfish Company, LLC received a $568,136 Project Grant award from the US Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service under the Farmers Market and Local Food Promotion Program. The grant will support the launch of Merroir.me, a new digital brand experience and direct-to-consumer marketing campaign to promote Maine seafood products in Connecticut and Rhode Island through 2024. Specifically, Community Shellfish Company will produce original videos, a website and...
- The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awarded a $10 million Project Grant under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) to the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC) on September 1, 2021 for the Sustainable Aquaculture Systems Supporting Atlantic Salmon (SAS2) program. The five-year program aims to foster the development of environmentally sustainable and economically feasible land-based recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS) for Atlantic salmon farming in...
THE PROPOSED PROJECT WILL FOCUS ON ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND BUSINESS TRAINING FOR BEGINNING AQUACULTURE FARMERS IN MAINE, WHO COMPRISE THE VAST MAJORITY OF THE SECTOR. AFTER EXTENSIVE DISCUSSIONS WITH MAINE'S AQUACULTURE FARMERS, THEY HAVE REQUESTED THAT THIS PROJECT HELPS TO IMPROVE THEIR FARMS' RESILIENCY BY FOCUSING ON FINANCIAL AND RISK MANAGEMENT TRAINING, INCLUDING IMPROVING UPON MAINE AQUACULTURE BUSINESS PLANNING AND RISK MANAGEMENT TOOLS, AIDING FARMERS IN DEVELOPING DIVERSIFICATION AND MARKETING STRATEGIES, INCLUDING THE EXPLORATION OF NEW MARKETS, AND PROVIDING AN OVERVIEW OF FARM FINANCIAL BENCHMARKING. THE PROJECT'S PLAN OF ACTION IS TO UPDATE THE AFOREMENTIONED TOOLS AND RESOURCES AND THEN MEET WITH BEGINNING FARMERS TO PROVIDE ENTREPRENEURSHIP, BUSINESS, FINANCIAL, AND RISK MANAGEMENT TRAINING, WHILE SHARING THE UPDATED RESOURCES WITH THE FARMERS. THE MEETINGS WITH THE FARMERS WILL ALSO INCLUDE INFORMATION AND GUIDANCE ON DIVERSIFICATION AND MARKETING STRATEGIES, INCLUDING THE EXPLORATION OF NEW MARKETS, ALONG WITH HOW TO TAKE PART IN FARM FINANCIAL BENCHMARKING. PD BRAYDEN WILL THEN CONTINUE TO FOLLOW-UP AND MEET WITH THESE BEGINNING FARMERS AS THEY PROGRESS THROUGH THEIR BUSINESS PLANNING PROCESS, FORM THEIR NEW MARKETING AND DIVERSIFICATION STRATEGIES, AND BEGIN THEIR OWN BENCHMARKING. THE GOALS FOR THE PROJECT ARE TO HELP FARMERS ASSESS, ANALYZE, AND PLAN FOR THE FUTURE OF THEIR FARMS TO CREATE A FINANCIAL SAFETY NET AND IMPROVE SECTOR RESILIENCY, ALL WHILE GENERATING JOBS AND ECONOMIC GROWTH IN THE RURAL AREAS IN WHICH AQUACULTURE OFTEN OCCURS, AS NEARLY ALL OF THIS PLANNING WILL TAKE PLACE ON BEGINNING FARMS THAT ARE INTENT ON EXPANSION.
Mod # | Description | ReasonForModification | Federal Obligation | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not listed | ($4k) | 2/22/23 | ||
| Not listed | $27.8k | 8/26/21 |