Closed
California state funding opportunity
Farm to Community Food Hubs Grant Program
CA Department of Food and Agriculture
- Portal ID95324
- StatusClosed
Competitive proposals usually start 6+ weeks out.
Program summary
Synopsis
Funding planning and food aggregation and distribution infrastructure for community food hubs to increase purchasing of local, environmentally sustainable, climate smart, and equitably produced food by schools and other institutions to build a better food system economy, support the local farming and Indigenous food production economies, accelerate climate adaptation, and employ food system workers with fair wages and working conditions.
CDFA's Farm to Community Food Hubs Program has up to $13.75 million available to award in competitive grants for organizations developing and expanding community food hubs in California. The program will prioritize funding the creation of new community food hubs. Up to ten percent of the funding will be set aside for California Native American Tribes and Tribal-led nonprofit organizations. A community food hub is an organization or business that serves as a supply chain intermediary by purchasing food products from and providing aggregation, distribution, and/or marketing services for multiple local or regional California food producers, especially those using sustainable or climate-smart agricultural practices and following state labor practices. The community food hub provides these services to strengthen the ability of its California food producer communities to reach sales markets with wholesale, retail, and/or institutional buyers and identifies the source (e.g. location where food was produced) of 100% of the food products sold. This competitive grant program will fund community food hub projects that: (1) Serve California food producers, such as farmers, ranchers, seafood harvesters, and California Native American Tribes, Tribal members, or Native American people using Indigenous food production practices (2) Prioritize serving California food producers that that represent at least one of the following: operate on 500 acres or less; are cooperatively owned; are using sustainable, climate smart, or regenerative agriculture practices or production systems; socially disadvantaged food producer; veteran food producer; beginning food producer; limited resource food producer; disabled food producer (3) Prioritize distributing California food to public institutions and nonprofit organizations, with an emphasis on public schools, food banks, and other food distribution nonprofit organizations serving low-income communities in the region. (4) Cultivate financial sustainability via strategies that help cover long-term costs Funding Tracks Track 1 Planning has an award amount of $50,000 - $250,000 and will fund community food hub planning activities for new and existing community food hubs for up to 24 months. Track 2 Infrastructure and Operations has an award amount of $350,000 - $2,000,000 and will fund infrastructure and operational costs for new and existing community food hub operations for 60 months. There is no matching requirement. Grant funds cannot be used for donations of any kind, including food.
Timeline
Key dates
-
February 12, 2025
Opportunity posted to California Grants Portal -
April 14, 2025
Applications close -
Summer 2025
Expected award date
Who may apply
Eligibility
Eligible applicant types as published by the awarding agency:
- Business
- Nonprofit
- Other Legal Entity
- Public Agency
- Tribal Government
- Additional info on eligibility
- Eligible entities include federally and non-federally recognized California Native American Tribes and Tribal-led nonprofits. Eligible public agencies include public school districts, Tribal schools, Tribal colleges, County Offices of Education, public institutions of higher education, and Resource Conservation Districts. Food hubs that had an average annual gross income greater than $5 million the past three-year period are not eligible to apply.
- Geography
- Applicants must be based and operating in California. Projects must only purchase and sell California grown or produced food.
Awarding agency
Additional information
- Agency name
- CA Department of Food and Agriculture
- Full announcement
- View the full announcement ↗
- Grantor contact
-
Christina Harrington
1-916-539-6017
cafoodhubs@cdfa.ca.gov
Funding
Funding source
- Source
- State
- Funding method
- Advances & Reimbursement(s)
- Notes
- One-time funding from California's General Fund.
Government Grants Consulting
Federal, state, and local grant funding is highly competitive, and the gap between a complete application and a winning one usually comes down to strategy, compliance, and execution. GTC 360° Advisors supports organizations across the entire grant lifecycle — from identifying the right opportunities to managing the award long after it is won. The questions below cover how our grant consulting practice works and the organizations we serve.
What is government grant consulting, and how does GTC 360° Advisors help?
Government grant consulting means guiding an organization through the full grant lifecycle — research, eligibility review, strategy, writing, submission, and post-award compliance. GTC 360° Advisors manages this end to end, pairing grant writers, project managers, financial analysts, and compliance analysts to maximize the odds of an award and keep it in good standing afterward.What types of organizations can GTC 360° Advisors help win grants?
GTC 360° Advisors supports municipalities, state agencies, nonprofits, school districts, tribal governments, higher education institutions, and private companies pursuing grant funding. Clients have included the City of Los Angeles, Texas A&M University, the Montana State University System, Virginia Commonwealth University, and nonprofit partners such as the Walton Family Foundation and Blue Meridian Partners.What federal agencies has GTC 360° Advisors secured funding from?
GTC 360° Advisors has secured funding from agencies including the Departments of Energy, Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, Agriculture, Health and Human Services, Commerce (EDA and NIST), Education, and State, as well as FEMA, EPA, NSF, NIH, HRSA, SAMHSA, and the CDC. The firm has won over $860 million and counting in federal and state contracts and grants for its clients.Does GTC 360° Advisors handle state and local grants, or only federal?
GTC 360° Advisors pursues grant funding at the local, state, federal, and international levels. The firm’s advisor network is positioned in every state to help clients identify and compete for regional and state-level funding in addition to federal opportunities.What is GrantSignal AI, and how does it help find grant opportunities?
GrantSignal AI is GTC 360° Advisors’ AI-powered funding intelligence platform. It aggregates federal, foundation, and other public funding sources into a single dashboard, then uses AI to match opportunities to an organization’s mission, eligibility, and capacity — rather than relying on simple keyword search — and sends alerts as new, winnable opportunities appear.Does GTC 360° Advisors provide grant compliance and post-award management?
Yes. GTC 360° Advisors manages grants through close-out, including compliance with 2 CFR 200 (Uniform Guidance), Davis-Bacon labor standards, Section 3, environmental review requirements, and funder reporting obligations. The firm builds compliance systems and reporting frameworks so clients stay in good standing with federal and state grantors.What is GTC 360° Advisors’ track record on grant applications?
GTC 360° Advisors has historically maintained an 88%-plus win rate on the grant applications it has submitted, including a 100% win rate in 2024 across several highly competitive programs. Recent wins include $180 million in EDA Tech Hubs funding for three consortia and $20 million in EDA Recompete funding for the City of Birmingham, Alabama.Can nonprofits and higher education institutions work with GTC 360° Advisors on grants?
Yes. GTC 360° Advisors regularly supports nonprofits and universities with grant strategy, writing, and administration, including current work with the Walton Family Foundation, Blue Meridian Partners, Texas A&M University, the Montana State University System, and Virginia Commonwealth University.
Working With GTC 360° Advisors
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How much does it cost to work with GTC 360° Advisors?
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Engagements typically start with a conversation about your organization’s goals, funding needs, or growth targets, followed by a scoped proposal outlining services, team, and pricing. From there, GTC 360° Advisors assigns team members matched to the work and begins with research, strategy, or capture planning, depending on the engagement.How long does it take to see results from a grant or contract engagement?
Timelines vary by opportunity: some grant or contract cycles run a few months from research to submission, while others (large infrastructure or multi-year programs) take longer and continue through post-award management. GTC 360° Advisors sets clear project timelines and milestones at the start of every engagement so clients know what to expect.Does GTC 360° Advisors work with organizations outside the United States?
GTC 360° Advisors primarily supports U.S.-based government contracts, grants, and business development, but its public affairs and business development services extend internationally through its global partner network for clients running cross-border campaigns.Can I join the GTC 360° Advisors Network as a consultant or subject matter expert?
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You can reach GTC 360° Advisors at info@gtc360.com or through the contact form at gtc360.com/join-our-network. The firm typically responds to discuss goals, funding needs, or growth targets and outline next steps for an engagement.
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