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Sustainable Ag Demonstration grants available to Minnesota farmers

Minnesota farmers have about a month to apply for Sustainable Ag Demonstration grants through the Department of Agriculture (MDA).

MDA is making $250,000 available to fund on-farm research promoting sustainability.

MDA grants supervisor David Weinand says the program supports various types of farming.

“We’ve done a number of livestock projects.  We’ve also done different tillage practices to make a determination if the tillage is going to be beneficial to the crop the following year, and things like that.”

Grant recipients are required to work with someone who has a research background for eventual replication on other farms.

Projects can receive up to $25,000 dollars, and Weinand tells Brownfield multi-year studies are encouraged.

“Just doing one per crop season doesn’t really give you a lot of really good, repeatable research.  So that’s why we prefer to have projects that last at least (and) up to three years.”

Weinand says applications from farmers receive priority, but the program also funds Minnesota non-profit and educational organizations as long as Minnesota farmers are meaningfully involved in the project.

The deadline to apply for a Sustainable Ag Demonstration grant is December 13^th.