The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service awarded a $306,525 Project Grant under the Farmers Market and Local Food Promotion Program (CFDA 10.175) to Rooted Farmers, Inc., a woman-owned small disadvantaged business, for the period of September 30, 2024 to September 29, 2027. The grant supports Rooted Farmers' development of an innovative digital platform designed to streamline market access, operational management, and sales processes for small and mid-sized...
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awarded a $650,000 Project Grant under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program to Eden Concepts, LLC, a woman-owned small business. The funding will support the development, validation, and commercialization of an innovative, integrated planting system that enables growers to germinate seeds on-farm and precisely plant them in the field. This autonomous system aims to replace labor-intensive...
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service awarded a $625,000 Project Grant under the Farmers Market and Local Food Promotion Program (CFDA 10.175) to Farmgate Technology, LLC (doing business as Roots & Fruits) to support the development of an online market and delivery solution for local and regional agricultural producers in Southern California. The project will increase the capacity of 113 agricultural and value-added producers in San Bernardino County, as well as...
This federal Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) / Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program (CFDA 10.212) provides $124,333 to Good Agriculture, Inc. to develop a flexible farm management system for small and mid-sized farmers. The system will utilize voice-to-text technology and artificial intelligence to help farmers analyze their operational data, identify...
This federal Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (CFDA 10.212 - Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program / Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program) provides $181,500 in funding to Universal Schedule & Booking LLC, a minority-owned small business, to develop a digital infrastructure for deploying means-tested food access subsidies. The goal is to create new models for providing community-driven,...
The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded a $650,000 Project Grant to Agrofocal Technologies, Inc. under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program / Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program (CFDA 10.212). The funding supports the development of Agrofocal's real-time crop monitoring system that can be mounted on any vehicle to provide high-resolution, under-the-canopy images of crops. This system enables farmers to monitor crop health,...
Universal Schedule & Booking LLC, a minority-owned small business, received a $650,000 Project Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture to develop a digital platform and data analytics to help small and mid-sized farms market products directly to consumers. The grant funding will be used to build e-commerce features and agritourism experiences into a mobile application, enabling farms to sell products online and facilitate...
The federal Project Grant award for the EDGEBOT.AI project, funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program (CFDA 10.212), aims to develop an accessible platform that empowers farmers and agricultural professionals to utilize AI and data-driven tools for improved crop management. The $174,923 award to Madain Corp. will fund the creation of user-friendly AI applications that can analyze...
Rooted WI Inc. was awarded a $100,000 Project Grant from the United States Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service on July 20, 2021 to support local farm to school programs through June 30, 2023. The award was provided through the Farm to School Grant Program (CFDA #10.575), which aims to improve access to local foods in the USDA's Child Nutrition Programs. Under the grant, Rooted WI Inc. will implement farm to school initiatives that connect schools and local farms to provide...
This Project Grant award of $649,655 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture was made to Root Applied Sciences Inc., a small disadvantaged, woman-owned business, under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program (CFDA 10.212). The funding supports the development of an automated system to simultaneously monitor airborne fungal pathogens, such as grapevine powdery mildew, and insect pests, like vine mealybug, in vineyards. By providing...
This Project Grant award from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) / Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program (CFDA 10.212) provides $649,935 to Rooted Farmers, Inc., a self-certified small disadvantaged, woman-owned business, to further develop and test its online platform that provides market access and operational support for small and mid-sized farms.
The Rooted Farmers platform currently serves the domestic floriculture market, but this two-year Phase II award will enable the company to complete development of a food-focused version of the platform and conduct real-world testing with partners including agricultural experts, transportation and logistics providers, and food hubs, farms, and wholesale buyers. The goal is to empower small and mid-sized farms to streamline operations and improve economic viability, while also strengthening the overall resilience of the nation's food supply chain.