Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig announced that the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship is once again offering Choose Iowa Value-Added Grants to expand the availability of Iowa grown, Iowa raised, and Iowa made foods, beverages, and other agricultural products. These Choose Iowa grants match up to $25,000 per project to help farmers, businesses, and non-profits increase or diversify their agricultural product offerings, which provide more local food choices to consumers.
“Choose Iowa continues to build momentum because consumers are driving strong demand for local Iowa products. Choose Iowa grants help farmers and small businesses add value, tap into new markets, and enhance consumer choice, all while generating economic activity within our communities,” said Secretary Naig. “We welcome applications for creative and innovative projects that can benefit from this Choose Iowa grant to expand the availability of Iowa grown, raised, and made food, beverages, and ag products.”
Applicants can use Choose Iowa grant funding to add new processing, packaging or sales techniques that add value to the crops, livestock, and other products that they produce. For example, a farmer may invest in an on-farm store or cold storage to sell meat, eggs or produce direct to consumers, or a produce grower may upgrade their commercial kitchen to process larger quantities of seasonal produce at the peak of freshness. Grant funding can also be used for employee training and continuing education programs. Meat processing and dairy processing projects are not eligible for Choose Iowa grants as separate dedicated grant funding programs are available for both. More information about the Choose Iowa Butchery Innovation Grant and Choose Iowa Dairy Innovation Grant opportunities are available on the Choose Iowa website.
Choose Iowa Value-Added Grants are highly competitive. In the past two years, the program received applications totaling nearly $2.4 million in requests. Twenty-eight recipients were awarded in 2023 and 26 recipients were awarded in 2024 for projects ranging from increasing cold storage, to expanding processing proficiency and distribution capabilities, to improving production capacity and efficiency.
Individuals, businesses, and non-profit organizations that are currently living or operating in Iowa may apply. Preference will be given to small to medium-sized businesses. Details about the grant program, including financial matching requirements, the application, and eligibility criteria, are available on the Choose Iowa website.
Applications should be submitted through the online portal on the Choose Iowa website and are due by 12:00 p.m. CST on January 31, 2025. Grant recipients will be announced in April 2025. Questions about the Choose Iowa value-added grants can be directed to chooseiowagrant@iowaagriculture.gov.
