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Agricultural Marketing Service · United States

Dairy Business Innovation Initiatives Program (DBI) Fiscal Year 2026

Open

Agricultural Marketing Service expects to make 4 awards of $2.3 million – $3.45 million each, from a total budget of $12.65 million. Applications close on 4 Jan 2027. Eligible applicant types include others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification).

About this call

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), requests applications for fiscal year (FY) 2026 from existing initiatives of the Dairy Business Innovation (DBI) Initiatives Program: the California State University Fresno Foundation, the University of Tennessee, the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, and the University of Wisconsin.

These initiatives serve to:

• Diversify dairy product markets to reduce risk and develop higher value uses for dairy products;

• Promote business development that diversifies farmer income through processing and marketing innovation; and

• Encourage the use of regional milk production.

Approximately $12.65 million is available to fund these initiatives. In the FY 2025 application cycle, AMS funded four applications from the existing initiatives awarding a total of $11,040,000.

AMS strongly encourages DBI initiatives to prioritize subaward funding for projects that request equipment and infrastructure activities in their proposals for these FY2026 funds. See the DBI Specific Terms and Conditions for guidance on allowable equipment and construction costs. Equipment and infrastructure investments are critical to strengthening the dairy industry and overall dairy businesses capacity and DBI is currently uniquely positioned to offer such targeted funding opportunities.

Who can apply

• Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS), requests applications for the fiscal year (FY) 2025 only from the existing four initiatives of the Dairy Business Innovation (DBI) Initiatives program: the California State University Fresno Foundation, the University of Tennessee, the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, and the University of Wisconsin.

Applicant categories are a starting point. The official call decides eligibility.

Topics

Agriculture

Timing

Applications must be submitted electronically no later than 11:59 pm Eastern Time.

How to apply

1. Read the full notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) linked from the official page: eligibility, cost sharing and evaluation criteria.
2. Make sure your organisation has an active SAM.gov registration and Unique Entity ID (UEI); registration can take several weeks.
3. Register with Grants.gov and set up a Workspace for this opportunity, with the right roles for your organisation.
4. Prepare the required forms, narrative, budget and attachments exactly as the NOFO specifies.
5. Submit before the deadline and keep the tracking number. Check for amendments before you submit.

From the call text

Who can apply

Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page

Company stage

Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page

Single applicant or consortium

Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page

Where applicants must be based

Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page

Where to apply

Not stated in the call text we hold — check the official page

Contact

Agricultural Marketing Service · IPPGrants@usda.gov · 202-260-8449

Where these facts come from

Official sources

Official call page · Funder's programme page

Facts on this page come from the funder’s official data, taken on 13 Nov 2026. The funder's own documents, including later amendments, always take precedence.

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