Northwest Cider Association

Northwest Cider Association, a tax-exempt nonprofit based in Mt. Vernon, Washington, operates as a sub-recipient of federal grant awards focused on market development and promotion of Washington cider and cider-apple products. The organization holds no prime federal contracts or IDVs and does not appear as a prime grant recipient; all three recent federal awards flow through the State of Washington Department of Agriculture as the grant prime, with Northwest Cider Association conducting the underlying work.

The organization's federal footprint is tightly concentrated. All three awards originate from the Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service, generating $749 thousand in combined obligations across a three-year span (2022–2024). Work includes timely market development for Washington craft cider and cider made with Washington-grown apples (November 2022), Washington craft cider market development activation via the National Cider Conference (October 2023), and education and activation to drive sales of Washington cider by targeting gatekeepers in the trade (September 2024). Activity has remained flat at one award annually, with no recompete signals in the source data.

As a sub-recipient rather than a prime grantee, Northwest Cider Association operates within a single federal grant program administered by USDA's Agricultural Marketing Service, leveraging the State of Washington Department of Agriculture as its pass-through entity. The organization's federal posture is characteristic of trade associations and industry bodies engaged in commodity promotion — no competitive contracting footprint, no standing on GSA vehicles, and revenue derived entirely from sub-award capacity related to market development and industry outreach for a specific agricultural product.