Public Affairs
WASHINGTON, July 11, 2023-- The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) today announced $300,000 in available grant funding through the Sheep Production and Marketing Grant Program (SPMGP) to strengthen and enhance the production and marketing of sheep and sheep products in the United States. Grant applications are currently being accepted through September 15, 2023.
“Projects funded by the Sheep Production and Marketing Grant Program have already made measurable impacts on our nation’s sheep industry,” said USDA Under Secretary for Marketing and Regulatory Programs Jenny Lester Moffitt. “From increasing processing capacity in areas experiencing bottlenecks in production to expanding critical research on pathogens affecting sheep flocks, projects such as these will ultimately increase the availability and consumption of sheep products across the country.”
In 2019, USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service awarded a five-year grant for $1.9 million to the National Sheep Industry Improvement Center (NSIIC). Each year, the center subawards approximately $300,000 to projects that develop solutions for practical problems and address the needs of the entire sheep industry, while focusing on the measurable benefits for sheep producers, encouraging partnerships among other sheep industry organizations, and reducing duplication of effort among participating organizations.
Additional information is available on the AMS Sheep Production and Marketing Grant Program webpage. Applications must be submitted directly to the NSIIC and will be reviewed by their Board of Directors via a competitive process. The board will then make funding recommendations to AMS for approval.
For more information about the center, including previous awardees, visit the NSIIC website.
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