Health Food Financing Initiative FARE Fund
Posted by Investing in Food
Type: Funding
Application Deadline: October 14, 2024 at 11:59 pm
The HFFI Food Access and Retail Expansion Fund (HFFI FARE Fund) is a new program under the expanded America’s Healthy Food Financing Initiative.
Over the next 5 years, the new program will provide $60 million in loans, grants, and technical assistance for the predevelopment, planning, and implementation of eligible food retail and food retail supply chain projects.
AVAILABLE FUNDING
Competitive grants and technical assistance will be available for eligible food retail and food retail supply chain projects in the predevelopment and implementation stages. In the 2024-2025 funding cycle, at least $9,000,000 is available for implementation grants, at least $1,500,000 is available for technical assistance, and at least $16,000,000 is available for loans. Grant funds will be distributed through three rounds of funding. Technical assistance and loans will be distributed on a rolling basis.
Grant awards will be up to $250,000 for implementation and up to $100,000 for early-stage planning, predevelopment, and technical assistance. Loans to eligible projects may range between $500,000-$5,000,000. Loans may be paired with technical assistance or a grant to strengthen the viability of the project.
To be considered for a grant in Round 1 of the HFFI FARE Fund, Funding Inquiry Forms must be received by October 14, 2024 by 11:59 PM Eastern Time. Any Inquiry Forms submitted after this date and time will be considered for Round 2. Inquiry Forms submitted outside of the SmartSimple online grants portal will not be accepted. Technical assistance and loans will be distributed on a rolling basis.
