AMS No. 036-09

Jimmie Turner (202) 720-8998

jimmie.turner@usda.gov

Billy Cox (202) 720-8998

billy.cox@usda.gov

WASHINGTON, March 27, 2009 -- The U.S. Department of Agriculture today announced that the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program -- Farm Bill will become effective March 30, 2009. Details of the program will be published in the Federal Register on March 27.

The Specialty Crop Block Grant Program – Farm Bill is authorized under the Specialty Crops Competitiveness Act of 2004, amended under section 10109 of the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Farm Bill). Section 10109 directs the Secretary of Agriculture to make grants to states to be used by state departments of agriculture solely to enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops. This program is separate from the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) found in 7 CFR 1290.

For each fiscal year, each state that submits an application that is reviewed and approved by USDA’s Agriculture Marketing Service is to receive at least an amount that is equal to the higher of $100,000, or 1/3 of 1 percent of the total amount of funding made available for that fiscal year. In addition, each state will receive an amount that represents the proportion of the value of specialty crop production in the state in relation to the national value of specialty crop production, using the latest available complete specialty crop production data set.

A notice soliciting grant proposals is expected to be published soon in the Federal Register. The notice will include instructions for applying for the grants and the amount of funds available for each state department of agriculture.

For more information, contact Trista Etzig at (202) 690-4942; or e-mail: Scblockgrants@usda.gov.

Additional information on the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program is available at http://www.ams.usda.gov/scbgp.html.