Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program

The primary goal of BFRDP is to help beginning farmers and ranchers in the United States and its territories enter and/or improve their successes in farming, ranching, and management of nonindustrial private forest lands, through support for projects

The BFRD Program supports new and established local and regional training, education, outreach and technical assistance initiatives to increase opportunities for beginning farmers or ranchers.

The recipient must be a collaborative, State, tribal, local, or regionally-based network or partnership of public or private entities, which may include: state cooperative extension service; community-based and nongovernmental organization; college or university (including institutions awarding associate degrees); or any other appropriate partner. Others may be eligible to apply. Please refer to Part III of the current BFRDP Request for Applications for complete eligibility requirements.

The recipient must be a collaborative, State, tribal, local, or regionally-based network or partnership of public or private entities, which may include: state cooperative extension service; community-based and nongovernmental organization; college or university (including institutions awarding associate degrees); or any other appropriate partner. Others may be eligible to apply. Please refer to Part III of the current BFRDP Request for Applications for complete eligibility requirements.

Competitive grants are made to support: (A) mentoring, apprenticeships, and internships; (B) resources and referral; (C) assisting beginning farmers or ranchers in acquiring land from retiring farmers and ranchers; (D) innovative farm and ranch transfer strategies; (E) entrepreneurship and business training; (F) model land leasing contracts; (G) financial management training;. (H) whole farm planning; (I) conservation assistance; (J) risk management education; (K) diversification and marketing strategies; (L) curriculum development; (M) understanding the impact of concentration and globalization; (N) basic livestock and crop farming practices; (O) the acquisition and management of agricultural credit; (P) environmental compliance; (Q) information processing; and (R) other similar subject areas of use to beginning farmers or ranchers. In addition, cooperative agreements may be awarded to establish Education Teams: (1) In General: In carrying out this section, the Secretary shall establish beginning farmer and rancher education teams to develop curricula and conduct educational programs and workshops for beginning farmers or ranchers in diverse geographical areas of the United States. (2) Curriculum: In promoting the development of curricula, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable, include modules tailored to specific audiences of beginning farmers or ranchers, based on crop or regional diversity. (3) Composition: In establishing an education team for a specific program or workshop, the Secretary shall, to the maximum extent practicable: (A) obtain the short-term services of specialists with knowledge and expertise in programs serving beginning farmers or ranchers; and (B) use officers and employees of the Department with direct experience in programs of the Department that may be taught as part of the curriculum for the program or workshop. (4) Cooperation: (A) In General: In carrying out this subsection, the Secretary shall cooperate, to the maximum extent practicable, with: (i) State cooperative extension services; (ii) Federal and State agencies; (iii) community-based and nongovernmental organizations; (iv) colleges and universities (including an institution awarding an associate's degree) or foundations maintained by a college or university; and (v) other appropriate partners, as determined by the Secretary. (B) Cooperative Agreement: Notwithstanding chapter 63 of title 31, United States Code, the Secretary may enter into a cooperative agreement to reflect the terms of any cooperation under subparagraph (A). An award also may be made to establish a Curriculum and Training Clearinghouse. The Secretary shall establish an online clearinghouse that makes available to beginning farmers or ranchers education curricula and training materials and programs, which may include online courses for direct use by beginning farmers or ranchers. Set-Aside: Not less than 25 percent of funds used to carry out this subsection for a fiscal year shall be used to support programs and services that address the needs of: (A) limited resource beginning farmers or ranchers (as defined by the Secretary); (B) socially disadvantaged beginning farmers or ranchers (as defined in section 355(e) of the Consolidated Farm and Rural Development Act (7 U.S.C. 2003(e)); and (C) farmworkers desiring to become farmers or ranchers.

Section 12301 of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (Pub. L. 115-334) 7 U.S.C. 2279(l) (7) limits indirect costs for this program to 10% of total federal funds awarded. Therefore, when preparing budgets, applicants for Standard Grants, and Education Teams (ETs), proposals must limit their requests for recovery of indirect costs to 10 percent of the total funds requested.

The Statutory time limitation is three (3) years from the project start date on the Award Face Sheet (Form NIFA-2009). Educational Enhancement Team (EET) Projects: In accordance with statutory time limits, project periods, including no-cost extensions of time, are not to exceed five (5) years. Further details are provided in the Award document Form NIFA-2009 and the NIFA General Terms and Conditions Grants and Cooperative Agreements.

NIFA evaluates each application in a two-part process. First, each application is reviewed to ensure that it meets the administrative requirements set forth in the NOFO. Second, a peer-review process (NIFA Peer Review Process for Competitive Grant Applications | NIFA (usda.gov)) will be used to evaluate the scientific and technical merit of applications that have meet the administrative requirements. After each peer review panel has completed deliberations, the responsible NIFA program staff will either recommend an application for support from available funds or decline an application due to insufficient funds or unfavorable review.

Within the limit of funds authorized, the NIFA awarding official will make grants to eligible applicants whose applications are judged most meritorious under the procedures set forth in this NOFO. Successful applicants receive two types of notifications in the award phase: informal and formal. After award recommendations are complete, NIFA will provide an informal notification to the potential awardee. This informal notification is not an authorization to begin performance. After the award is finalized, a formal notification in the form of a Notice of Award (NoA), signed by the Authorized Departmental Officer, will be provided to the applicant organization for successful applications. The NoA is the authorizing document and will be sent via email to the recipient's Authorized Representative. The NoA will provide pertinent instructions and information including, at a minimum, the information described in 2 CFR 200.211 (see NIFA's Terms and Conditions).

From 30 to 60 days. Contact the National Program Leader (NPL) regarding dates for specific deadlines, start and end dates, and range of approval/disapproval time.