Building a comprehensive network for farm and ranch stress assistance in the northeast

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded the National Young Farmers Coalition, Inc. $2.352 million on September 30, 2025, under the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network Competitive Grants Program (CFDA 10.525) to build and expand a comprehensive network of mental health and stress assistance service providers for agricultural producers, workers, and their families across the Northeast.

The award funds the development and coordination of the Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network – Northeast (FRSAN-NE), which connects farmers, ranchers, and farmworkers in Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maryland, West Virginia, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Vermont, Pennsylvania, New York, Delaware, and Washington, D.C. to mental health counseling, crisis intervention, training, and support groups delivered through a collaborative network of service providers. The National Young Farmers Coalition administers FRSAN-NE and leads a regional leadership board to enhance access to services and train service providers across all northeastern states, addressing the needs of all types of agricultural producers.

The award period runs through September 29, 2027, with place of performance in Albany, New York. The program addresses documented mental health crises in agriculture: suicide rates among male farmers and ranchers were 44.9 per 100,000 in 2012 and 32.2 per 100,000 in 2015, substantially exceeding the national average of 12.9 and 13.7 respectively in those years. FRSAN-NE consolidates previously disconnected service providers in the region to enable comprehensive, coordinated crisis response for farmer clients.