RFP0416 Milk and Dairy Promotion or Research 2027.pdf

KATHY HOCHUL

Governor

RICHARD A. BALL

Commissioner

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Request for Proposals

RFP#0416

Statewide Financial System Opportunity # AGM-DPO27 funding from the NYS Dairy Promotion Order

Dairy Promotion or Research Program 2027

Release Request for Proposals (RFP) July 29, 2026

Dairy Promotion Order Advisory Board Meeting

October 14-16, 2026 in Syracuse, NY

Deadline for Questions August 24, 2026

Questions and Answers Posted September 1, 2026

Deadline for Proposals September 18, 2026

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Contents

1. PROPOSAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

2. QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

3. GENERAL PROGRAM INFORMATION

A. Program Description

B. Funding Available

C. Awards

D. Match Funding Requirement

4. PROGRAM GOALS AND ELIGIBILITY

A. Program Goals

B. Applicants

C. Project Duration

5. HOW TO APPLY

A. Proposal Format

B. Proposal Content

C. Accessing State Financial System (SFS) Grants Management System (GMS) .. 8

6. PROPOSAL EVALUATION and AWARD PROCESS

7. CONTRACT & PAYMENT TERMS

A. Contracts

B. New York State Master Contract For Grants

11. PAYMENT

12. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

A. Claim for Payment Report

C. Final Report

13. LIABILITY

14. WORKER’S COMPENSATION AND DISABILITY INSURANCE

15. FREEDOM OF INFORMATION

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16. OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

1. PROPOSAL SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

The New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets (the “Department”) is pleased to announce the availability of funds from the Dairy Promotion Order (DPO) for the Dairy Promotion or Research Program 2027. Proposals should be sent to:

NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets Attn: Christin Gravelle

10B Airline Drive Albany NY 12235

NYDPO@agriculture.ny.gov

Proposals should be formatted as a PDF and emailed to NYDPO@agriculture.ny.gov to ensure timely delivery. If proposals are mailed to the address above, please ensure delivery by the due date listed above. Proposals must be submitted by 3:00pm on Friday, September 18, 2026. Proposals received after 3:00pm on Friday, September 18, 2026 will not be considered.

The name for this opportunity is “Dairy Promotion or Research Program 2027” and the Grant Opportunity ID is AGM-DPO27

2. QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

All questions about this RFP must be submitted via e-mail by the due date listed above:

Subject Line: “Dairy Promotion or Research Program 2027 RFP Question(s)”

NYDPO@agriculture.ny.gov Attn: Christin Gravelle

A list of questions about the program which are received from potential applicants, and answers to those questions, as well as any changes, additions or deletions to the RFP, will be posted in the Funding Opportunities section of the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets website (https://agriculture.ny.gov) as well as the Contract Reporter on September 1, 2026.

mailto:NYDPO@agriculture.ny.gov https://agriculture.ny.gov/

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3. GENERAL PROGRAM INFORMATION

A. Program Description The invitation solicits proposals for projects that market, promote, and research New York-produced fluid milk and dairy products with the goal of increasing consumer demand for and consumption of New York dairy products.

Project terms will begin on January 1, 2027.

B. Funding Available A total of $16,901,250 in funding is available through this Request for Proposals.

Once a contract is fully executed, grant funds will be disbursed on a reimbursement basis.

The Department may retain 10 percent of the budget amount to be dispersed to the contractor when the final report is completed and accepted.

C. Awards The Department will first screen proposals to ensure that they meet eligibility requirements.

All proposals deemed eligible by the Department will be evaluated and awarded by the Dairy Promotion Order Advisory Board.

D. Match Funding Requirement Matching grant funds are not required to submit a proposal.

4. PROGRAM GOALS AND ELIGIBILITY

A. Program Goals

1. Increase the consumption of New York milk and dairy products by youth (lunches, breakfasts, and other offerings).

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to create a program that targets youth (pre-k through 12) that results in an increase in consumption of New York milk and dairy products in that age group.

The awardee is expected to document, track and share with the board at the end of the calendar year, the unique messaging used to attract youth, the specific organizations/institutions they targeted and why, the vehicles and partnerships established to reach the target audience and the increase in consumption that resulted from these efforts.

2. Promoting uniqueness of, and increased sales of, New York milk, dairy products and / or ingredients throughout the entire food supply chain through various distribution channels and partnerships, including but not limited to, e-commerce, curb-side sales, etc.

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to create a program that markets and/or promotes the uniqueness of New York State dairy products and/or partner with others, throughout the entire food supply chain (retailers, e-commerce outlets, curbside food delivery services, state legislator, 5 | P a g e food banks, etc.), to promote New York State dairy products. The awardee is expected to document, track, and share with the board, at the end of the calendar year, the messaging used to promote “uniqueness of NYS products”, specific channels and vehicles used to reach each entity in the supply chain, measurable metrics demonstrating the reach of these efforts, and the increase in dairy sales in NYS as a result of these targeted efforts/programs.

3. Positively influence the public perception of dairy products and / or dairy producers’ farming practices among consumers while highlighting the impact of local production on New York communities.

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to create awareness and educational campaigns, which enhance the narrative surrounding dairy products, dairy farmers and farming practices, placing an emphasis on locally grown, environmentally friendly and sustainable practices, highlighting the importance and impact of dairy farming in our rural communities. The awardee is expected to collaborate, document, track and share with the board, at the end of the calendar year, specific locations and placements where the enhanced narrative can be seen, metrics that demonstrate the reach of this revised narrative, that strengthen public awareness and lead to positive engagement or conversion rate.

4. Improve the consumption of New York milk and dairy products by highlighting progressive dairy farm best management practices and environmental stewardship.

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to develop a program/platform and supplemental materials/apps/websites/branding/metrics etc., that show how dairy farmers, stakeholders, advocates, and influencers can assist the dairy industry in highlighting how dairy farmers improve continue to improve environmental stewardship best management practices. The awardee is expected to document, track, and share with the board, at the end of the calendar year, how the platform/program works and why specific metrics were selected, how messaging is influenced by emerging technologies how the program is being promoted to farmers and consumers, the current number of farms that are using this program and how the program resulted in an increase in dairy sales in NYS.

5. Increase the sales and consumption of milk and dairy products produced in the US and exported to other countries.

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to create a program that promotes US dairy products to countries worldwide. The awardee is expected to document, track and share with the board, unique channels used to reach these international markets (i.e. what products were you promoting, how were you promoting them, and to whom) and how this increased sales of these specific dairy products from NYS.

6. Participation in national programs influencing increased consumption of milk and dairy products.

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to participate in the national dairy promotion and research program. The awardee is expected to document, track and share with the board, at the end of the calendar year, how their participation in the national promotion and research program resulted in an increase in sales of NY dairy products.

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7. Create target marketing to promote the consumption of NYS Milk and dairy products to youth and their caregivers.

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to create a marketing program that promotes New York state dairy products to youth and their caregivers. The awardee is expected to document, track and share with the board, at the end of the calendar year, the unique messaging used to attract this target population, the specific organizations / institutions they targeted and why, the vehicles and partnerships established to reach the target audience and the increase in consumption of NYS dairy products that resulted from these efforts.

8. Develop and implement marketing strategies that are inclusive of the socially diverse population to increase the consumption of NYS milk and dairy products.

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to create a marketing strategy / program that markets dairy products to socially diverse populations and to document, track and share how these marketing strategies actually reached these populations (what marketing vehicles, tactics, campaigns, tools, platforms were used) and demonstrate how this led to increased awareness of, and sales of, NYS dairy products to, and from, these populations.

9. Conduct research projects that create new products and / or enhance the safety, quality, and sensory attributes to expand the demand for New York dairy products and dairy ingredients.

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to conduct research to 1.) address innovations in dairy product safety, quality, nutritional, and sensory attributes as well as 2.) identify new, unique, and emerging products and trends that enhance the utilization of milk and dairy ingredients in dairy product offerings. The awardee is expected to document, track and share with the board, at the end of the calendar year, the results of their research program.

10. Develop a research study identifying opportunities and challenges to the vitality of the dairy industry that can be used to educate consumers ensuring the growth of dairy processing in New York State.

Descriptor: The respondent is expected to conduct research that examine the relationship between inputs and resulting dairy products, including analysis of economic factors, environmental considerations and consumer demand drivers. Based on this research, the respondent will lead or assist in the development of targeted educational content or promotional campaign that communicates the value of dairy to consumers, thereby encouraging consumer engagement and contribution to the vitality of the dairy industry in New York State.

This is not an exclusive list. If you have an idea for a promotion or research project that is not included in the description above but has the potential to benefit New York State Dairy producers or the NYS dairy industry, you are invited to submit a proposal.

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B. Applicants

1. Eligible applicants include private businesses that are not affiliated with the DPO Advisory Board, non-profit entities, and research institutions. Project proposals may not promote a specific brand or trade name. Only reasonable and actual costs directly associated with the implementation of approved projects that are incurred during the contract period up to the amount awarded will be reimbursed.

2. Applicants will need to be registered and potentially prequalified in the Statewide Financial System (SFS) prior to creating a contract and receiving an award. Please use this link to register and prequalify. Please Note: It is highly recommended that applicants register and begin the pre-qualification process in SFS as early as possible. This process may take several weeks to complete.

https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/register-your-organization-sfs

a) Government entities must be registered, but do not need to be pre-qualified in SFS. Refer to section 5. C. Accessing SFS

C. Project Duration Projects must be completed by December 31, 2027.

Awarded contract term will begin on January 1, 2027. All contracts will end on December 31, 2027.

5. HOW TO APPLY

A. Proposal Format Proposals should be sent to:

NYS Department of Agriculture and Markets Attn: Christin Gravelle

10B Airline Drive Albany NY 12235

NYDPO@agriculture.ny.gov

Proposals should be formatted as a PDF and emailed to NYDPO@agriculture.ny.gov to ensure timely delivery. If proposals are mailed to the address above, please ensure delivery by the due date listed above. Proposals must be submitted by 3:00pm on Friday, September 18, 2026. Proposals received after 3:00pm on Friday, September 18, 2026 will not be considered.

https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/register-your-organization-sfs

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B. Proposal Content Each proposal is comprised of a Work Plan and Budget for the proposed project.

Brief, pre-recorded supplemental video presentations may also be submitted. Videos segments should be no more than 10-12 minutes per individual initiative/project. Please ensure these videos are not duplicative and cover areas that will not be covered at the meeting. Larger files may be sent via Dropbox link or a link using another cloud storage service, or by compressing the video into a zip folder. Videos should use the following naming convention: Organization Name + “2027 Proposal Presentation” + Project Name (If applicable). Please remember this information will be open to the public: keep this in mind before sharing any proprietary information.

C. Accessing State Financial System (SFS) Grants Management System (GMS)

Applicants will need to be registered and prequalified in SFS prior to creating a contract and receiving an award. Please use this link to register and prequalify. Please Note: It is highly recommended that applicants register and begin the pre-qualification process in SFS as early as possible. This process may take several weeks to complete.

https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/register-your-organization-sfs

To Prequalify, your organization must first register with SFS and complete an online Prequalification Application. This includes answering basic questions regarding the organization and uploading key organization documents. Information and training for vendors on SFS and the process for prequalification can be found at:

https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/.

Once Prequalified, it is the responsibility of the organization to maintain Prequalification.

Three of a not-for-profit’s essential financial documents – the IRS990, Financial Statement, and Charities Bureau filing – expire on an annual basis. A not-for-profit must upload current versions of these documents and submit an updated prequalification application for review and approval each year to maintain its prequalification. Not-for-profits are provided a full 10.5 months from the end of their fiscal year to provide a current IRS990 or Financial Statement without the interim requirement of uploading extension requests. For more information regarding the pre-qualification process, please view the Prequalification Manual for Grantees.

To start the pre-qualification process, applicants must:

• - Log into the SFS Vendor Portal;

• - Click the “Grant-Management” button on the SFS home page;

• - Click on the “pre-qualification application” tab;

• - Answers all questions;

• - Upload required documents; and

• - Enter or update the organization’s contact information.

NOTE: New York State reserves 5-10 business days from the receipt of complete Prequalification applications to conduct its review. If supplementary information or updates are required, review times will be longer. Due to the length of time this process https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/register-your-organization-sfs

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For-Profit entities must be registered, but do not need to be pre-qualified in SFS.

If you do not have access to the SFS Vendor Portal and if your organization is already established within the SFS Vendor portal, an SFS Delegated Administrator has been authorized within your organization to provision user login credentials, unlock accounts, or reset passwords. Please reach out to your SFS Delegated Administrator directly.

If your organization is not currently doing business with New York State, you will need to submit a Substitute W-9 Form to obtain a New York State SFS Vendor ID, in addition to the Registration Form for Administrators, to register.

If the entity is new to the SFS Vendor portal, does not have a login, and would like to establish an account for the purposes of doing business with the State of New York, contact the SFS Help Desk at 518-457-7717, 855-233-8363 or HelpDesk@sfs.ny.gov for more information.

The NYS SFS GMS offers a Vendor Manual, training videos and webinars for applicants requiring assistance.

Please visit https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/transition-SFS.

D. Work Plan and Budget The Work Plan is comprised of objectives, tasks, and performance measures following the template attached “SOW Fillable Form w Boxes”:

Be Sure to include:

Total Amount of funding requested: $

Summary of Company in the project summary (100 words or less)

List each project you are requesting funding for, the DPO goals addressed by each project, key personnel, and a summary of the work to be completed in each project. The project summary should include how each goal will be measured to determine accomplishment, including a list of key performance indicators that will be used to measure the success of the project, as well as how the project will benefit NYS dairy producers or the NYS dairy industry. Each summary should be 200 words or less.

mailto:HelpDesk@sfs.ny.gov https://grantsmanagement.ny.gov/transition-SFS

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A budget breakdown for each project using the template attached “Send to Vendor Excel Budget Template” and encompassing the following categories:

• Salary (staff salaries of the primary applicant)

• Contractual

• Travel

• Equipment

• Space/Property Rent

• Operating expenses

• Other

6. PROPOSAL EVALUATION and AWARD PROCESS All proposals received by the deadline will be first screened by the Department to ensure that they meet eligibility requirements. All eligible proposals received by the deadline will be competitively rated by the Dairy Promotion Order Advisory Board during the Dairy Promotion Order (DPO) Advisory Board meeting to be held October 14th - 16th, 2026 in Syracuse, NY.

Funding decisions are expected to be made at that time.

Proposals will be scored on the following: project description, work plan, reasonableness of cost, project impact and performance measures, and organizational capacity and personnel.

Organizations that submit proposals are encouraged to attend the public funding meeting in October to make an in-person presentation to the DPO Advisory Board and answer any questions the board may have.

While the NYS DPO Advisory Board will consider multi-year project proposals, funding awards will only be made for one year at a time. This also allows the NYS DPO Advisory Board to consider the effectiveness of the project and accounts for source funding variabilities.

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7. CONTRACT & PAYMENT TERMS

A. Contracts

A contract defining all terms and conditions and responsibilities of the awardee will be developed by the Department after funds have been awarded. The contract will incorporate the work plan and budget included in the awardee’s project proposal, among its provisions.

Upon execution of the contract by the awardee and the Department, it may be submitted for approval to the Attorney General of the State of New York and the Comptroller of the State of New York.

Organizations who are successful in receiving NYS DPO funding for their work will acknowledge the NYS DPO support in any publication reporting results of the sponsored project.

B. New York State Master Contract For Grants

New York State has developed a standard “Master Contract For Grants” containing standard clauses required in all State Contracts. The Master Contract For Grants will be executed for all projects awarded under the RFP, and awardees are responsible for complying with the terms and conditions contained therein.

The Master Contract For Grants can be found at:

https://www.budget.ny.gov/guide/bprm/h/h-1032-nys-contract-for-grants-2024.pdf

Attachments to the Master Contract For Grants will include: NYS Standard Terms and Conditions; (A-1) “Agency Specific Terms and Conditions”; (A-2) “Program Specific Terms and Conditions”; (B-1) “Expenditure Based Budget”; (C) “Work Plan”; and (D) “Payment and Reporting Schedule”.

11. PAYMENT

Once the contract is fully executed, grant funds will be disbursed by reimbursement only.

The Department may retain ten percent (10%) of the budget amount to be disbursed to the contractor until such time as the final report is accepted.

A New York State Claim for Payment Form must be submitted to the Department for reimbursing the contractor for funds expended.

https://www.budget.ny.gov/guide/bprm/h/h-1032-nys-contract-for-grants-2024.pdf

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12. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

Recipients will be required to collect and report data necessary to document program activities and results:

A. Claim for Payment Report Vendors must outline expenses by budget category with documentation showing payments made.

B. Progress Reports The Contractor shall submit quarterly Progress Reports summarizing how the Contractor has progressed toward attaining the qualitative goals enumerated in the Work Plan. Organizations that receive funding are expected to present a status update, and include a presentation (virtual and/or in person) at both a mid-year and end-of-year board meeting. These reports should address all goals and objectives of the project and include a discussion of problems encountered and steps taken to solve them. A template progress report is made available by the Department.

C. Final Report A Final Report will be required within sixty (60) days following completion of the project. A Final Report template will be provided by the Department. The Final Report shall include a detailed description of the work completed. The Department reserves the right to modify reporting requirements during the project. In addition, NYS DPO requires electronic copies of final reports, which NYS DPO may use in describing the project and its results in any publication, on the web, or in the NYS DPO annual report.

13. LIABILITY

The Department shall not be held liable for any costs incurred by any party for work performed in the preparation of and production of a proposal or for any work performed prior to the formal execution of a contract.

14. WORKER’S COMPENSATION AND DISABILITY INSURANCE

New York State Workers’ Compensation Law sections 57 and 220 require that the Department of Agriculture and Markets not enter into a contract unless proof of Workers’ Compensation and Disability Insurance in a form satisfactory to the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board has been secured.

Please visit the New York State Workers’ Compensation Board website: www.wcb.ny.gov, for more information. You may contact the Board’s Bureau of Compliance with any questions related to workers’ compensation or disability insurance at (866) 298-7830.

http://www.wcb.ny.gov/

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15. FREEDOM OF INFORMATION

All proposals submitted and all related contracts and reports may be subject to disclosure under the Freedom of Information Law.

16. OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

A. The Departments reserves the right to:

1. Reject any or all proposals received with respect to this program.

2. Waive or modify irregularities in proposals received after prior notification and concurrence of the applicant.

3. Request from an applicant additional information as deemed necessary to more fully evaluate its proposal.

4. Amend the program’s specifications after their release, with appropriate written notice.

5. Select only certain portions of the proposal for funding.

6. Negotiate the terms of any agreement proposed by the applicant.

7. Make all final decisions with respect to the amount of funding and the timing of payments to be provided to the applicant.

All eligible proposals submitted in response to this solicitation will become the property of the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets.