St. Charles Times

The Missouri Agricultural and Small Business Development Authority (MASBDA) is accepting applications for funding through its new Show-Me Entrepreneurial Grants for Agriculture (SEGA) program. Missouri entities seeking to add value to agricultural products or provide educational opportunities to those seeking to do so should submit their application by Friday, April 28.

“Missouri has a long-term vision to grow agriculture, our state’s top economic driver, and make Missouri an even bigger player in the food, fiber and forestry markets,” said Director of Agriculture Chris Chinn. “This grant program is a part of the long-term vision that can help farmers and agribusinesses take their ideas to the next level.”

The Show-Me Entrepreneurial Grants for Agriculture program is open to individuals, businesses and institutions of higher education. Grants are funded by an appropriation from the Missouri General Assembly to encourage value-added agriculture innovation in the state.

This grant program was developed to address recommendations of the Missouri Food, Beverage, and Forest Products Manufacturing Task Force, chaired by Lieutenant Governor Mike Kehoe in 2019. Lt. Governor Kehoe continues to provide leadership for the state’s value-added agricultural initiatives.

“We are committed to increasing resources and value-added opportunities for Missouri agriculture producers and entrepreneurs,” said Lieutenant Governor Kehoe. “This grant program will have an incredible impact on our state’s economy by providing innovative solutions to expand Missouri’s agricultural production.”

The SEGA program consists of five separate parts:

• Innovation Grant Program: provides grants for the development of Missouri businesses that add value to agricultural products.
• Technical Assistance Grant Program: provides reimbursement of expenses to producers or businesses for technical assistance related to the creation and expansion of Missouri businesses that add value to agriculture products.
• Workforce Development Grant Program: provides reimbursement of expenses to Missouri producers or businesses associated with hiring, training and certifying new and/or current employees of an entity that is adding value to an agriculture product.
• Institutional Grant Program: provides grants to Missouri institutions of higher education for the creation and implementation of unique learning opportunities for Missouri producers and businesses interested in increasing value-added agriculture.

Fee Offset Program: provides cost offsets to Missouri value-added agricultural enterprises associated with food processing and food safety laboratory services, including nutritional facts labeling, pH, water activity, microbiological services, and process authority review.

The individual programs are limited to the following maximum awards:

• Innovation Grant Program: up to $250,000 for any value-added agricultural business or service concept, with a 25 percent cash match.
• Technical Assistance Grant Program: up to $7,500 for an eligible technical assistance program, with a 25 percent cash match.
• Workforce Development Grant Program: up to $5,000 for any agricultural business workforce development concept, with a 25 percent cash match.
• Institutional Grant Program: up to $100,000 to any Missouri institution of higher education and $250,000 maximum for projects submitted jointly by more than one Missouri institution of higher education with a 25 percent in-kind or cash match.
• Fee Offset Program: up to $250 in fee offsets per operation.

MASBDA is administering the SEGA program. Numerous industry and academic partners are engaged, including with the newly formed Missouri Agriculture, Food and Forestry Innovation Center (MAFFIC). MAFFIC offers resources and technical assistance to help Missouri agricultural producers successfully pursue value-added agricultural production and marketing.

Applications must be submitted to MASBDA by 5 p.m. Friday, April 28. Grant program application forms and evaluation criteria are available online at www.masbda.com.

MASBDA will introduce these grants and answer your questions about eligibility and how to apply in a one-hour webinar on Thursday, March 9, at noon. Register to attend here: https://tinyurl.com/SEGAwebinar.

For questions about the Show-Me Entrepreneurial Grants for Agriculture program and financial assistance offered by the Missouri Agricultural and Small Business Development Authority, please visit www.masbda.com or contact the MASBDA team by email at masbda@mda.mo.gov or by phone at (573) 751-2129.

For more information about the Missouri Department of Agriculture and its programs, visit the Department online at Agriculture.Mo.Gov.

Original Source can be found here.