USDA Department: Rural Development
Grant focus: Food and Nutrition Security, Food Loss and Waste, Nutrition, Nutrition and Food Systems, Farmer Education
Application period: August 1-October 31, 2023
Awards Range: $250,000-$10 million: the maximum award amount is $10 million, or 30 percent of total project costs, whichever is less, the minimum grant is $250,000 for projects that include both construction and equipment purchases, the minimum grant for equipment-only projects is $5 million.
Match: None
Intended applicants: Entities that engage or plan to engage in meat and poultry processing, including private, non-profit, tribal, cooperative, state or local government, among other entities. Private entities must be independently owned and operated. All entities must be domestically owned, and their meat and poultry processing facilities must be physically located and operated within the U.S. or its territories.
Summary: The Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program (MPPEP) provides grants to help eligible processors expand their processing capacity, which create new, better and more processing options for meat and poultry producers. USDA Rural Development designed the MPPEP to encourage competition and sustainable growth in the U.S. meat processing sector, and to help improve supply chain resiliency.
