USDA: Farm Business Management and Benchmarking Competitive Grants Program (US)

The FBMB program aims to strongly support innovative extension approaches and collaborative efforts to maintain and expand the publicly available national farm financial management database (FINBIN). Such efforts are needed to meet the challenges facing the nation’s agriculture and food systems. Farm management producers must be educated and prepared to work effectively across disciplines to solve agricultural and educational challenges. Meeting these challenges will require projects that are timely, strategic, creative, and multi-disciplinary. The FBMB program supports all producers to develop farm management knowledge and skills that are consistent with the agriculture and food systems priorities of the USDA.

The FBMB program supports novel projects that encompass the management of money at the personal, firm, and public levels to support livelihoods and quality of life for agricultural producers and farm communities. The FBMB program also supports projects that incorporate social and behavioral science disciplines, leadership skills development, and decision-making which are important elements to address the many challenges facing agriculture and farm communities. These challenges may include but are not limited to increasing global demand for food production in the face of limited natural resources; improving health opportunities and outcomes; reducing food loss and waste; and alleviating poverty by creating economic opportunity and supporting workforce development. The FBMB is aligned with following:

• The USDA Strategic Plan FY 2022-2026 goals:
  • Goal 2: Maximize the Ability of American Agricultural Producers to Prosper by Feeding and Clothing the World
  • Goal 4: Facilitate Rural Prosperity and Economic Development
  • Goal 5: Strengthen the Stewardship of Private Lands Through Technology and Research
• The USDA Science and Research Strategy, 2023–2026 priorities:
  • Priority 5: Translating Research Into Action

Objectives

• Objectives provide clarity on what the project will achieve. FBMB projects must  address at least one of these Objectives:
  • Maintain and expand the already established national, publicly available farm financial management database to support improved farm management knowledge and skills for producers of a variety of crops and livestock throughout multiple regions of the United States.
  • Establish or expand outreach-based, collaborative farm management educational programs with farm organizations or associations that will contribute data to the existing national farm financial management database (FINBIN) to improve the farm management knowledge and skills of all agricultural producers.

Funding Information

• The amount available for Farm Business Management and Benchmarking (FBMB) program in 2025 is approximately $2,000,000. USDA is not committed to fund any particular application or to make a specific number of awards.

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants for the Farm Business Management and Benchmarking (FBMB) program must meet all the requirements discussed in this RFA. Failure to meet the eligibility criteria by the application deadline may result in exclusion from consideration or, preclude NIFA from making an award. For those new to Federal financial assistance, NIFA’s Grants Overview provides highly recommended information about grants and other resources to help understand the Federal awards process. Applications may be submitted by numerous entities. Pursuant to 7 U.S.C.  3157(b)(7), eligible applicant means:
  • State agricultural experiment station;
  • College and universities;
  • University research foundation;
  • Other research institutions and organizations;
  • Federal agencies;
  • National laboratories;
  • Private organizations or corporations;
  • Individuals; or
  • Any group consisting of two (2) or more of the entities described in subparagraphs (A) through (H).
• Award recipients may subcontract to organizations not eligible to apply provided such organizations are necessary for the conduct of the project.
• Duplicate or Multiple Submissions. Duplicate or multiple submissions are not allowed. NIFA will disqualify both applications if an applicant submits duplicate or multiple submissions.

For more information, visit Grant.gov.