Union County TN Farmers Market

Union County TN Farmers Market, a tax-exempt nonprofit based in Maynardville, Tennessee, operates as a federal grant recipient under the Department of Agriculture, supporting local and regional food system development and direct producer-to-consumer market expansion in rural Tennessee communities. The organization acts exclusively as a prime recipient on federal grants; it does not hold federal contracts or contract vehicles, and has no subcontracting footprint.

Union County TN Farmers Market serves as a community hub for agricultural commerce and food distribution within Union County, Tennessee. The nonprofit's federal funding footprint spans two Department of Agriculture grant programs. The Department of Agriculture Agricultural Marketing Service has awarded three grants totaling $312,500 in obligation: a $312,500 Cooperative Agreement under the Farmers Market and Local Food Promotion Program (CFDA 10.175) awarded March 1, 2026 and running through February 28, 2029; and a $50,000 COVID-19 relief grant (Project Grant, assistance type) awarded January 3, 2022 and completed January 2, 2023, which funded workplace safety, market pivots, facility retrofitting, transportation, worker housing, and medical expenses for farmers market operations and employees during the public health emergency declared January 27, 2020. The Department of Agriculture Rural Business Cooperative Services has awarded two Rural Business Cooperative Rural Enterprise Grants (RBDG): one for $155,000 awarded September 26, 2025 and running through September 26, 2027, and a prior award of unspecified magnitude issued July 22, 2022 and completed July 22, 2024. The source does not detail the specific products, services, or activities delivered under the active Cooperative Agreement or the two RBDG project grants.

Funding concentration centers entirely on USDA, split between the Agricultural Marketing Service (three awards, 100% of identified AMS grants) and Rural Business Cooperative Services (two awards). Activity has been sporadic — one award in 2020, two in 2022, one in 2025, and one in 2026 — with only one award reaching ultimate completion within the next twenty-four months.