More funding is now available for California farmers and ranchers who have been impacted by the coronavirus. The Federal Coronavirus Food Assistance Program (CFAP) reopened earlier this month and the next round of California Relief Grants is opening April 28, 2021.

Coronavirus Food Assistance Program

CFAP has reopened for applications from farmers and ranchers who have experienced impacts due to the pandemic. Administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA), farmers and ranchers should reach out to their local FSA offices to start applications. You can find your nearest office here. This most recent cycle re-opened on April 5, 2021 and will be accepting applications for at least 60 days – the final deadline will be established at a later date. Learn more about CFAP from USDA here.

Importantly, at least $2.5 million of CFAP-2 funds is committed to improve direct outreach to socially disadvantaged farmers and ranchers to facilitate access to the funds.

USDA Pandemic Assistance for Producers Initiative

The re-opening of CFAP-2 is part of a larger program from USDA to provide more assistance for the nation’s farmers and ranchers still recovering from COVID-19 impacts. USDA will also invest $6 billion to develop new programs or modify existing programs to ensure they reach producers who need it most. USDA is also providing $500 million more in funding to existing programs, including:

• Specialty Crop Block Grant Program
• Farmers Opportunities Training and Outreach Program
• Local Agricultural Marketing Program
• Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program

Learn more about this extra assistance here.

California Relief Grants: Round 6 April 28-May 4

The California Relief Grant is opening for round 6 of funding from April 28 – May 4 for small businesses and nonprofits, including farms and ranches. If you have already applied but have not been awarded yet, your application will be automatically considered for this round.

If you are interested in applying for this round, get your application ready now with some tips from our friends at Community Alliance with Family Farmers (CAFF):

1. 1. Several short videos walk you through the application process. They are available in Cantonese, English, Hmong, Korean, Mandarin, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese. Watch here.
   2. Review the application guide in English or Spanish – Get important tips and see screenshots of each step of the application process.
   3. You’ll need the following documents, so start scanning them now:

1. 1. • Federal Tax Return (2019 or 2018, whichever is most recent, all pages, in PDF format)
      • Business license, articles of incorporation, fictitious name registration, or producers certificate – if applicable to your business
      • Your completed application certification (for-profit| non-profit)
      • Photo ID (driver’s license, REAL ID, state ID, or passport)

When applications open on April 28 – find and complete the application here: https://careliefgrant.com/