Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA25) | USDA AMS 10182 LFPA0000 25 0001

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA AMS 10182 LFPA0000 25 0001

The Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA25) is a USDA Agricultural Marketing Service (AMS) funding opportunity that supports States, U.S. territories, and federally recognized Tribal Governments in buying locally produced food and moving it into communities that have been historically underserved. The program is designed to build on earlier rounds of LFPA and LFPA Plus while also opening the door for governments that did not participate before to launch new LFPA25 projects. The basic idea is straightforward: public entities use federal funds to purchase local, domestic foods that are unprocessed or only minimally processed, with a strong emphasis on purchasing from historically underserved farmers, producers, and fishers, as well as small businesses that help move food through the supply chain, such as processors, aggregators, and distributors. The food purchased through these agreements is then distributed with the intent to reach underserved communities, especially those that are not typically served through standard or established food distribution networks.

A key focus of LFPA25 is strengthening local and regional food systems in a way that creates durable economic opportunity. Beyond increasing access to nutritious local food, AMS is clearly aiming to expand market access and revenue for smaller and historically underserved producers and the small businesses that support them. The program encourages projects that intentionally incorporate culturally relevant foods based on community needs and preferences, including options such as kosher and halal when appropriate. Another important expectation is relationship-building: AMS signals that applicants should actively engage the intended beneficiaries and partners when developing the required Project Summary, and that USDA would like the purchasing relationships and distribution channels created through the project to continue after the cooperative agreement ends.

LFPA25 is structured as a cooperative agreement rather than a typical grant, which means recipients should expect ongoing involvement from USDA. AMS indicates it will provide not only funding for eligible food purchases, but also guidance, technical assistance, instruction, and monitoring across the full life cycle of the agreement. At the same time, the allowable spending is tightly limited. LFPA25 funds can only be used for food procurement. Recipients are not allowed to charge the program for direct or indirect costs tied to developing, managing, or administering the project, so budgets must be built around purchases of eligible food items only. In addition, all food must meet the program definitions for local and domestic and must be unprocessed or minimally processed as described in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (specifically referenced as section 1.2.1, with further detail on allowable and unallowable costs in section 4.6.2).

Funding is substantial and is divided between Tribal and State/territory agreements. A total of 100 million dollars is reserved for Tribal cooperative agreements, split evenly so that 50 million is allocated for Tribes that participated in past LFPA rounds and 50 million is reserved for Tribes that have not previously participated. Separate from that, 371.5 million dollars is available to States and territories. Awards are described as non-competitive, but they are still conditioned on the acceptability of the Project Summary and the recipient government entity demonstrating the ability to carry out the program goals. For States and territories, the amount each receives is based on the statutory Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) funding formula, which takes into account poverty rates and unemployment levels so that funding aligns with relative need.

Eligibility is limited to governmental entities: State governments, U.S. territory governments, and federally recognized Tribal governments, including the specific agencies, commissions, or departments responsible for agriculture, procurement, food distribution, emergency response, or similar public functions. AMS will make only one award per State or territory, which means each State/territory must coordinate internally to submit a single application/Project Summary that covers the intended approach. Tribal awards are handled separately and do not count as a State agency award, and USDA anticipates making additional awards to Tribal Governments under the Tribal allocation. The opportunity is listed under CFDA 10.182, uses a cooperative agreement instrument, and is identified as a mandatory opportunity. The funding opportunity number is USDA AMS 10182 LFPA0000 25 0001, and the posted closing date is April 30, 2025 (with the opportunity created December 10, 2024).

• The Agricultural Marketing Service in the agriculture, food and nutrition sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program (LFPA25)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.182.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-12-10.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-04-30. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized).

Apply for USDA AMS 10182 LFPA0000 25 0001

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