Dairy Promotion Grant for Farmers

Dairy Promotion Grants for Farmers in MA, NH, RI, and VT
Dairy Promotion Grants for Farmers in CT

New England Dairy’s mission is to champion New England dairy farm families and the nutritious foods they produce. We accomplish this by promoting dairy, building trust among consumers, and celebrating all things dairy — farming, food, nutrition, and wellness.

Our dairy promotion grant program supports activities that improve public perception of dairy farming and/or increase consumption of local dairy products.

What We Prioritize for Funding:

Events and programs that engage with youth (5-24 years old) or millennial consumers (25-40 years old)

We have identified several target audiences to focus on when building trust in dairy, including youth and millennial consumers. Youth are future consumers and building trust with this target audience will lead us into the future. Millennial consumers are making purchasing decisions for their family. Overall, we focus on events and program that connect farmers with consumers in their community.

Project Ideas:

Find inspiration for potential in-person or virtual events and programs:

• Events focused on farming: Open farm day, dairy crawls, environmental open house, cheese and wine tasting featuring a farmer, interactive exhibits at a fair or food festival.
• Milk sampling or Milk Bar in a Box at a community event: Must be paired with dairy education. New England Dairy has created a Milk Bar in a Box to support milk sampling. Dairy promotion grants can be used to purchase dairy products (but dairy donations are preferred) and other supplies needed for sampling. Contact our farmer relations team to learn more about what supplies are covered through the grant.
• School activities: Dairy-themed ag literacy kits, farm tours for schools
• Social media campaigns: Video series with targeted social media advertisements focusing on cow care, sustainability, health, and other topics

Promotion Grants | Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island

Farmers planning dairy promotion activities from February-August 2024 should plan to apply for a dairy promotion grant this session. 

Dairy farmers and dairy groups can apply for funding up to $2,400 annually*.

Deadlines:

Fall deadline: September 2024

Who is Eligible:

Dairy promotion grants are available to dairy farmers, dairy groups, and individuals working in partnership with a dairy farm (retired farmers, individuals representing nonprofit/educational organizations, etc.). Applicants must be associated with the production of cow’s milk and be located in Vermont, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island.

These are competitive grants. Decisions on grant awards will be made by a committee of New England Dairy staff. Applications will be evaluated based on information provided in the application and alignment with identified eligibility requirements (view our evaluation rubric). There is no guarantee that full funding will be awarded.

Grant reporting:

Projects must be completed by December 31, 2024. Grant recipients are required to submit a grant report by January 30, 2025, to remain eligible in the next calendar year. The report will include a brief description of your project, its impact, and photos. New England Dairy reserves the right to share photos and a summary of your project on our website and social media.

Application requirements and timeline:

Apply
Our next round of grant submissions will open in July.

Approval/Denial
Applicants will be notified by email after the application deadline of approval or denial, as well as the total funding amount.

Funding
Approved applicants will receive funding approximately 45 days after the application deadline.

Promotion Grants | Connecticut

Farmers planning dairy promotion activities from February-August 2024 should plan to apply for a dairy promotion grant this session. 

Dairy farmers and dairy groups can apply for up to $2,400 in funding annually*. Dairy promotion projects submitted for this grant must be used to build trust in dairy, improve public perception of dairy farming, and/or promote dairy consumption in general (not a specific brand). Funding is paid for by the Connecticut Milk Promotion Board.

Deadlines:

Fall deadline: September 2024

Who is Eligible:
Applicants must be associated with the production of cow’s milk as dairy producer or part of a dairy focused group (4-H, FFA, etc.) located in Connecticut. Applicants must complete the online grant application form, which includes an itemized budget.

Grants are competitive, and decisions on grant awards will be made by a committee of New England Dairy staff and reviewed by the CT Milk Promotion Board. Applications will be evaluated based on information provided in the application and alignment with identified eligibility requirements. There is no guarantee that full funding will be received with your application. Details on payment and reporting requirements will be shared with grant recipients upon award.

Grant reporting:

Projects must be completed by December 31, 2024. Grant recipients are required to submit a grant report by January 30, 2025, to remain eligible in the next calendar year. The report will include a brief description of your project, its impact, and photos. New England Dairy and CT Dairy reserve the right to share photos and a summary of your project on our websites and social media.

Application requirements and timeline:

Apply
Our next round of grant submissions will open in July.

Approval/Denial
Applicants will be notified by email after the application deadline of approval or denial, as well as the total funding amount.

Funding
Approved applicants will receive funding approximately 45 days after the application deadline.

Additional Grant Information

New England Dairy has established guidelines for funding in addition to the requirements of the dairy promotion and research order issued by USDA. While geographic diversity is desired, quality of projects funded will be the priority. *Please note: $2,400 in funding annually is available per farm. If your farm applies for a grant and an individual applies to host an event at your farm, both count toward the $2,400 allowance.

Allow

• Consumer education
• Issues/crisis management to maintain public confidence
• Nutrition, product, food safety, and consumer research
• Product marketing
• Efforts to help increase human consumption of dairy
• Providing information and education to government or policy leaders upon request
• Equipment for milk dispensing and distribution (bulk milk dispensers, refrigeration, etc.)
• Dairy product purchases for sampling (must include a dairy education component). Dairy used must be purchased from a source (e.g., a grocery store) other than your farm. Grant dollars cannot be used to purchase your own product.
• Liability insurance coverage (up to $250) for on-farm and community events (example: sampling milk at your local fair)
• Non-dairy food purchases (up to $500). Food purchases must be in connection with an on-farm or sampling event (example: lunch for open farm day or add-ons for our DIY milk bar kit)

Prohibit

• Disparage other foods or agricultural products
• Branded advertising – unless approved by National Dairy Board and USDA
• Activity to increase production – on farm or processing
• Programs that directly affect or target on-farm or retail pricing
• Promotion for non-human consumption of dairy
• Influencing government policy or action at any level
• Using funds for buildings and/or capital equipment
• Staff time (for farm employees and outside vendors)
• Funding for events that have already occurred