Farm Credit Awards Efforts to Develop and Promote Northeast Agriculture

ENFIELD, CONN. — The Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement Program, a joint initiative of Farm Credit East and CoBank, recently awarded $120,000 in grant funding to 25 organizations working to strengthen agriculture, forestry and commercial fishing across the Northeast. Funded projects support youth leadership development, young and beginning farmer initiatives, diversity and inclusion, food security, and advance Northeast agriculture. Applications for the next round of grants are due by December 1.

Many of the projects receiving the latest round of grants are working to support the next generation of agriculture. These include Bright Harbor Healthcare, Holstein Foundation/Young Dairy Leaders Institute, Homesteads for Hope, Maine FFA Association, Maine Forest Collaborative, New York Junior Holstein Association, Pro-Dairy Cornell Animal Science and the Campaign Against Hunger. City Seed, Inc., Great Results in Time (GRIT), Gulf of Maine Research Institute, KNOX, Inc., Liberation Ecosystem Inc. (LEI), Maine TREE Foundation and Southside Community Land Trust were awarded grant funds to support beginning farmers. 

Additionally, grants were awarded to programs promoting Northeast agriculture, forestry and fishing including, Cornell Cooperative Extension, New England Green Pastures, New York Fibershed, NOFA-Massachusetts, NOFA-New Hampshire and Vegetable Growers Association of New Jersey.

Vermont Cheese Council was awarded funding to enhance economic viability in Northeast agriculture. Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture, Conservation District Employees Association of New Hampshire and the Orleans County Natural Resources Conservation District also received grants for their food security and sustainability initiatives. 

Established in 1996, the Farm Credit Northeast AgEnhancement Program supports projects that promote and strengthen the region’s agricultural community. Since inception, the program has awarded more than $3.8 million to 1,268 projects. Applications for the next round of grant funding are due by December 1, 2026. Visit FarmCreditEast.com/AgEnhancement to learn more. 

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