Twenty Farms Apply for A Transformational Grant & You're Invited to Weigh In
Read the briefs. Add your comments & questions. Get closer to the amazing work that's going on with small farms across the United States.
In late 2025, the For Farmers Movement reviewed nearly 400 grant applications. Every farmer was invited to submit a proposal for a high-impact grant (up to $3000) and a concept for a $10,000 transformational grant. The For Farmers review panel awarded 100 farms with a high-impact grants and invited the twenty (20) most compelling concepts to apply for a transformational grant of $10,000.
These are the briefs for those proposals. You are invited to take a look under the hood and see what our farmers are up to, what they are thinking about, and what they are planning for the future. The For Farmers review team is considering each proposal very carefully and will announce ONE awardee on Tuesday, March 17, 2026, as part of National Ag Week. We invite and encourage you to get involved. Share your thoughts and questions with us here.
For the first time, we have funding for one transformational grant. While that’s super exciting, we know that funding only one project this year will be excruciating. If you’d like to support this program or know someone who might like to underwrite an additional grant, please get in touch.
The following information was pulled from application questions designed for brevity and does not represent the full depth of any of the projects. We will share more in the coming weeks.
Please be considerate when commenting or asking questions. This is a community of caring people who are invested in the future of small farms and their role in providing healthy food, vibrant communities, thriving soil and clean water, and interconnected local and regional economies.
At For Farmers, we believe it is important for all of us to be MORE connected to our food. This is a fun way get step inside.
Elemental Acres
Oregon
Proposed Project
Dual-Zone Walk-In Processing Cooler & Rail System
Project Description
Elemental Acres will convert our insulated processing room into a dual-zone refrigerated workspace using two CoolBot-controlled mini-split systems and install an overhead rail for hanging carcasses. This project will allow us to safely maintain 38 -40°F, double in-house production capacity, create a living-wage rural job, and strengthen the economic engine that funds our nationally significant Meishan breed preservation work.
Project Impact
This project will transform our processing space into a resilient dual-zone cold room.
Withywindle Valley Farm
Washington
Proposed Project
Building a natural tannery
Project Description
To open the first and only natural tannery in Washington State! My proposal is to build a natural tannery on my farm for processing my own sheepskins and opening my doors for education and custom hide tanning for other farms. The infrastructure proposed in this grant would mechanize the tedious process of bark-tanning sheepskins, be an extra income stream, and build a core asset of the farm.
Project Impact
Become Washington’s only natural tannery and building financial viability for my farm and others.
Trouvaille Farm
Ohio
Proposed Project
Appalachian Ohio Seed Growers Collective
Project Description
Appalachian Ohio farmers will build community and improve income through supported seed growing and processing.
Project Impact
Farmers increase skill and revenue by adding seed income, regionally adapted seed is more available.
Alleluia Acres Heritage Farm
Alabama
Proposed Project
Pole Barn for Community Education
Project Description
Building a permanent public education space on our farm to provide a large covered area for both children and adults to learn. This structure will allow us to increase farm revenue and community outreach by expanding our current Farm School sessions, developing sessions for adults to learn skills to increase food security, and hosting events for the public to learn about agriculture.
Project Impact
Exposes children to agriculture and fosters a love for farming to create future farmers.
Good Cheer Farm and Garden
Washington
Proposed Project
Good Cheer Packing Shed
Project Description
Good Cheer seeks funding to construct a packing shed to support its Farm and Garden program. Our farm produces over 20,000 pounds of fresh produce annually on 1.25 acres and supplies the organization’s Food Pantry year-round. A dedicated packing shed will provide a protected space to clean, sort, and package produce efficiently, improving food safety, workflow, and working conditions while increasing the amount of fresh, locally grown food available to community members.
Project Impact
This project will increase the efficiency, safety, and capacity of Good Cheer’s Farm.
Abounding Acres
Missouri
Proposed Project
Fresh Food, Longer: Cold Storage Expansion
Project Description
This project will expand cold storage at Abounding Acres through a walk-in cooler built from a repurposed insulated shipping container and mini-split powered by a CoolBot system. By properly storing our USDA Certified Organic produce, we can reduce waste, extend harvest life, drive growth, and share more fresh, local food with our community.
Project Impact
With expanded cold storage, more fresh, organic produce moves from our fields into our community.
Schmoe Farm
Georgia
Proposed Project
Sheep Grazing Power Benefits Pastured Poultry
Project Description
We want to replace mowing with our tractor with grazing sheep. We must keep the grass short to keep our rotated, pastured chickens healthy and the sheep would rotate with the chickens, and also provide meat for us to sell.
Project Impact
By switching from tractor power to grazing power, we achieve pasture management and new revenue.
Leaf to Beef
Massachusetts
Proposed Project
Virtual fence collars for grazing beef cattle
Project Description
Utilizing the new technology of virtual fence collars to more efficiently move my rotationally-grazed beef cattle up to twice a day to a new paddock of fresh grass. With three different herds grazing across 10 different farm pastures in 4 different towns that are as far as 25 minutes away from where I live, the benefit of being able to move my cattle to new pastures without physically moving the fence would be revolutionary.
Project Impact
To more intensively graze beef cattle across multiple leased properties using virtual collars.
Firelight Farm
Arkansas
Proposed Project
Central Arkansas Farm Delivery Cooperative
Project Description
Firelight Farm seeks a $10,000 grant to purchase a refrigerated cargo van for a cooperative delivery service. This service directly addresses the primary challenge for small Central Arkansas farms: inefficient market access due to geographic isolation. Consolidating deliveries into weekly routes will increase profitability for individual wholesale relationships by sharing costs and freeing up farmers’ time. The service will also provide wholesale customers with better access to a broader, more d (message cut off).
Project Impact
This project will significantly enhance Firelight Farm’s efficiency and family stability while also (message cut off).
Trust Land Farm
Montana
Proposed Project
Farm-grown Soup Packaging Design
Project Description
Black Bear Soups is a value-added business that will create a new, year-round market outlet for Trust Land Farm’s produce with the manufacturing and distribution of soups. Packaging design is the next step in this product’s development to get farm-grown soups on Montana shelves. The For Farmer’s $10k grant would be used to design product packaging, nutritional testing of soup recipes, and purchasing of packaging for batch testing soups made from our farm-grown vegetables.
Project Impact
Support an additional 10,000 lbs of produce sold and an increase in revenue of 217% over 3 years.
Cayuta Sun Farm
New York
Proposed Project
Piglet Protection for Pastured Pork Farms
Project Description
Cayuta Sun Farm will use the funds to demonstrate and support safe farrowing practices by funding the distribution of farrowing rails to pastured pig farmers. The grant will help finance the enterprise at our farm in New York by subsidizing the cost of farrowing rails. Making these huts more economically viable will encourage more pasture pig farms to use this feature, preventing the deaths of thousands of piglets over many years.
Project Impact
The distribution of farrowing rails will improve living conditions of pastured hogs and will save thousands of piglets.
JFRAI Family Farms
Maryland
Proposed Project
Resilient Roots: Climate-Smart Infrastructure
Project Description
Resilient Roots will strengthen JFRAI Family Farms’ climate-smart infrastructure by upgrading irrigation, enhancing greenhouse climate control, and improving post-harvest systems. This investment increases year-round production stability, reduces crop loss from extreme weather, and expands reliable food access in underserved Southern Maryland and Washington, DC. The project builds long-term resilience while stabilizing farm income and CSA supply.
Project Impact
Boosts year-round production 30% and expands resilient food access
Link Land & Livestock
Washington
Proposed Project
Mobile Infrastructure for Ethical Lamb Production
Project Description
I raise pasture-based lamb in Northwest Washington without owning a single acre of pasture, operating a proven multi-site grazing enterprise on 100% leased land. This project funds mobile transport, handling, and fencing systems that unlock regenerative grazing across commercial farms and underutilized pasture. The infrastructure will improve animal welfare, scale local lamb production to meet demand, and create shared capacity to strengthen multiple small sheep operations.
Project Impact
This project accelerates local lamb production in Whatcom County.
Fluffy Farms
New Jersey
Proposed Project
Advancing NJ Data-Driven Micro-dairy Development
Project Description
Advancing small-scale dairy in New Jersey through data-driven micro-dairy development and value-added production, Fluffy Farms is establishing baseline milk production data prior to genetic herd improvement and the transition to silvopasture. This project will support commercial milking readiness, strengthen farm viability through diversified goat-milk products, and generate practical insights to inform future dairy expansion statewide. Building a scalable model lowering barriers to entry.
Project Impact
Transforms preparation into operational dairy, unlocking data and diversified income.
All We Need Farm
Texas
Proposed Project
Productivity, Growth and Cajeta
Project Description
We are applying for this grant to support the launch of our new goat‑milk caramel, Cajeta. Funding will help cover the cost of essential kitchen upgrades and the specialized equipment required to meet Texas Department of State Health Services inspection standards. This support will ensure we can produce Cajeta safely, efficiently, and in full compliance as we expand our farm’s value‑added offerings.
Project Impact
This project will improve farm productivity and ultimately our farm profitability.
Haven Honey Farms
North Carolina
Proposed Project
Beekeeping Mentorship Expansion
Project Description
Haven Honey Farms will build a 20x40 covered workshop space to expand community education and launch an on-site beekeeping mentorship program for individuals without land access. We will also expand our existing off-site mentorship program by fully sponsoring BIPOC mentees with complete hive setups, year-long education, and 24/7 support. Each healthy hive produces 40–60 pounds of honey annually, creating pathways to agricultural income and community economic resilience.
Project Impact
New beekeepers thrive, pollinator habitat grows, and local food systems strengthen.
Oak Meadows Farm
Washington
Proposed Project
Egg Washing Capacity Expansion
Project Description
This project will apply grant funding toward the purchase of a commercial egg washer to expand capacity at our WSDA-licensed processing facility. The washer removes a key bottleneck limiting pasture-based egg production, enabling regenerative land management through laying hens while supporting wholesale markets. Increased capacity strengthens our shared processing model, improves efficiency, reduces waste, and helps keep more food production and processing local.
Project Impact
Enables scalable pasture-based egg production and shared processing for local farms.
Prairie Fruits Farm and Creamery
Illinois
Proposed Project
Silvopasture Establishment for Goat Dairy
Project Description
We are a pasture-based dairy goat farm and farmstead creamery in Illinois. With this grant, we will establish a silvopasture grazing system by planting shade and forage trees, protecting them with tubes, and installing paddock irrigation to support establishment. The work will be implemented across two grazing areas so it functions as a complete, working model. This project will improve goat comfort during extreme heat, strengthen pasture resilience, and create a system we can expand across our farm.
Project Impact
A working silvopasture system for healthier goats and pastures.
Pleasant Grove Homestead
Iowa
Proposed Project
Improving Farm Efficiency to Support Food Access
Project Description
Pleasant Grove Homestead seeks funding to purchase a commercial egg washing system for our flock of approximately 900 pasture-raised laying hens. This equipment will eliminate a major labor bottleneck by reducing egg handling time and allowing washing to occur during regular work hours. The project will strengthen farm sustainability and support continued access to affordable, locally produced eggs in rural Iowa.
Project Impact
This investment improves efficiency in our egg enterprise, strengthening long-term sustainability.
Working Dog Farms
New Jersey
Proposed Project
Working Dog Farms’ Chicken Neighborhood
Project Description
Working Dog Farms seeks the necessary funds to build a chicken neighborhood consisting of five mobile chicken trailers surrounded by electric fencing to double our flock size and better meet our demand for fresh eggs. We will purchase the materials to construct the mobile coops following a plan created from our most recent coop build, which we derived from years of trial and error in mobile chicken coop building.
Project Impact
Provide infrastructure to immediately double our laying flock to meet our community’s egg needs.
This Substack is a place for clear-eyed thinking about food, farming, and what actually has to change, and you don’t have to be there yet to belong here. Curiosity is enough.
I’m Dana DiPrima, founder of the For Farmers Movement, which supports small American farmers through grants, storytelling, and community action, and the host of One Bite Is Everything, a weekly podcast that connects the food on your plate to the bigger world of health, economy, and power. I didn’t start out here. I fed my kids fishsticks and poptarts once, too. I got here by asking questions, listening, and realizing how much was happening behind the scenes while many of us weren’t looking.
If you’re willing to ask better questions, one bite at a time, you’re in the right place.
I am the operations manager for Grinnell Farm to Table and Pleasant Grove Homestead has been our anchor egg producer for the last several years for both our retail store and our food access program, where we purchase food from farmers and donate at no cost to low income households and food pantries. In particular, PGH has been supplying eggs to several Poweshiek County food pantries. Although we have tons of hobby farm egg producers in our area, PGH are one of the only, if not the only, licensed direct market egg producers in our area and they are the only ones who have the volume of production to be able to supply the amount of eggs that food pantries need consistently (in addition to their other markets). The investment they are looking at is exactly the kind of efficiency upgrade that they need to maintain and grow their level of production so that they can be a viable, medium scale egg producer - exactly what we need to make local food economically feasible for producers and a real option for more consumers.
Pleasant Grove Homestead is an example of a local farm who has scaled up their operations with the primary goal of feeding their community. They participate in several local farmers’ markets, as well as several Iowa food hubs (Grinnell Farm to Table, Field to Family in Iowa City, and Iowa Food Cooperative in Des Moines), and they also participate in farm-to-school and farm-to-food-access programs. They are an anchor provider of eggs for the entirety of rural Poweshiek and Mahaska Counties. I am so excited to see them on this list - can’t think of a better place for a return on investment in this infrastructure.