Grant Overview

Minnesota's Local Food Purchase Assistance program ran on federal money and that money is gone. The state replaced it with $1.295 million in state funding, a March 31 2026 deadline, and one detail most organizations miss: requests under $50,000 require zero matching funds. The Farm to Food Security Grant Program (F2FS) funds organizations to buy Minnesota-grown food and give it away free to people experiencing food insecurity - particularly those who fall outside the traditional emergency food network. The competitive pool is smaller than LFPA ever was. But the scoring rubric is fully public, eligibility is unusually broad, and the no-match threshold gives small organizations access that LFPA's larger scale didn't.

This page covers what the MDA's own listing doesn't: the match math with worked examples, the source preservation documentation trap, what the 100-point rubric actually rewards, and the document requirements that catch applicants off guard when they least expect it.

Key Grant Information

Active

28 days left

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Farm to Food Security Grant Program FY2026-2027

Funded by Minnesota Department of Agriculture

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Grant Snapshot

Grant Award

$100,000

Application Deadline

March 31 2026 28 days left

Eligible Region

Minnesota, United States

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Eligibility and Benefits

Eligibility Criteria

• Must be an individual or nonprofit or for-profit business or Tribal government or government entity or agricultural cooperative or economic development organization or educational institution
• Must be authorized to do business in Minnesota
• Not suspended or debarred by the state or federal government
• In good standing with the Minnesota Secretary of State (or legally exempt)
• No board member or staff with grant fund access convicted of a felony financial crime in the last 10 years
• No back taxes owed to Minnesota and no default on MN state-backed financing in the last 7 years
• Not an MDA employee or their spouse or domestic partner (or a business principally owned by them)
• Project must purchase food that is at least 80% grown or raised in Minnesota
• All food distributions must occur within Minnesota and be free to recipients
• Project must be fully completed by June 30 2028 -- no extensions allowed

Grant Benefits

• $100,000
• Maximum award per organization
• Minimum award: $20,000 (Note: internal RFP conflict -- page 3 states $20,000 while page 29 states $25,000 -- verify with MDA before finalizing budget)
• No cash match required for requests below $50,000
• 1:1 cash match required on the portion above $50,000 for larger requests
• Administrative costs covered up to 15% of total project costs (reimbursed pro-rata alongside food expenses)
• Reimbursement-based payments only -- you spend first then invoice the state with proof of purchase and proof of payment

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Focus Areas

Local Food Distribution Food Insecurity Minnesota Agriculture Emergency Food Access

What Replaced the LFPA Program in Minnesota

If your organization received LFPA funding or had it on your radar and didn't act in time, here's the short version. LFPA was a federal program funded through USDA and the American Rescue Plan Act. Minnesota received $8.14 million across two rounds between 2022 and 2025. That funding cycle is over. The Minnesota Legislature created a state-funded successor in 2025: the Farm to Food Security Grant Program.

The two programs share the same core mission but are not the same program. A few rules changed in meaningful ways, and if you're applying based on LFPA assumptions, you'll need to recalibrate.

Three practical changes stand out. The origin threshold went from 70% within 400 miles to 80% grown or raised in Minnesota - a tighter standard that affects what you can buy and from whom. A letter from at least one Minnesota farmer is now mandatory rather than optional. And with no federal funding involved, 2 CFR compliance requirements don't apply. State rules govern entirely, which actually simplifies some administrative requirements for organizations familiar with federal grants.

Q: Is the Minnesota LFPA program still accepting applications?
A: No. The Minnesota Local Food Purchase Assistance program closed after its federal USDA funding was exhausted in 2025. The Farm to Food Security Grant Program is Minnesota's state-funded replacement. It operates under a new statute (Laws of Minnesota 2025, Chapter 34) and has different eligibility and documentation rules from LFPA in several areas.

How the Funding Works: Award Amounts and the Match Requirement

The total pool is $1.295 million. The MDA expects to award between 15 and 40 grants, though the final count depends on request sizes. Awards range from $20,000 (see the discrepancy note below) to $100,000. Every award is paid on reimbursement - you cover costs first and invoice MDA with documentation afterward.

The Match Formula: What It Actually Means in Dollars

The match requirement is the most commonly misunderstood part of this grant. Most applicants read "1:1 match" and assume they need to match the full award amount. That's wrong. The 1:1 requirement applies only to the portion of a request that exceeds $50,000. Below $50,000, there is no match at all.

If you're applying for the full $100,000, you need $50,000 in documented cash match - not $100,000. That match can come from cash reserves, loans, or other grants, as long as those funds did not come from the MDA or any other Minnesota state agency. In-kind contributions don't count. Only verified cash or liquid capital qualifies.

Q: Can my cash match come from another grant?
A: Yes, with one restriction. Match funds cannot come from the MDA or any other Minnesota state agency grant. Match from federal grants, private foundations, local government funds, or organizational cash reserves is all acceptable. You'll need documentation for match sources the same way you document grant expenditures - proof of contribution and proof of payment.

Q: What happens if my administrative spending gets ahead of my food purchasing?
A: Administrative costs are reimbursed pro-rata alongside food expenses. At any reimbursement request, at least 85% of documented spending must be on food. If your admin costs outpace food purchases at any checkpoint, the excess admin reimbursement is held until food spending catches up to maintain the 85/15 ratio. Budget your staffing and logistics with this pacing in mind from day one.

Who Qualifies for the Farm to Food Security Grant Minnesota

Eligibility is broader than most state food security grants. This program accepts for-profit businesses and individuals alongside nonprofits and government entities - which surprises a lot of applicants who assume food insecurity grants only go to 501(c)(3) organizations.

Eligible entity types include: individuals, nonprofit organizations, for-profit businesses, Tribal governments and Tribal entities, municipal and county government entities, agricultural cooperatives, economic development organizations, and educational institutions including colleges and universities.

Across all entity types, every applicant must meet the same baseline requirements: authorized to do business in Minnesota, not suspended or debarred by the state or federal government, in good standing with the Minnesota Secretary of State, no felony financial crimes among board members or staff who have access to grant funds in the last ten years, and no outstanding back taxes owed to Minnesota. Nonprofits also need active registration with the Minnesota Attorney General's Office (or an exemption from that requirement).

A few exclusions catch people off guard. MDA employees, their spouses or domestic partners, and businesses principally owned by them are not eligible as applicants and cannot benefit from the grant as vendors either. If your organization's board includes an MDA employee or their spouse, that's a conflict-of-interest disclosure situation - not automatic disqualification, but it requires documentation and possibly a mitigation plan.

Schools and early-care providers can participate, but food bought through F2FS cannot supplement meals that are reimbursed through federal programs including the National School Lunch Program, School Breakfast Program, Summer Food Service Program, or Child and Adult Care Food Program. If your school distribution is separate from those programs, you're fine. If it overlaps, you have an ineligibility problem. The MDA AGRI Farm to School program is designed for that use case instead.

Who This Grant Was Built For: Four Project Types From the RFP

The RFP includes four specific project examples. All four are real models reviewers are familiar with and score positively:

These aren't just illustrative. They signal what reviewers see as strong distribution models - particularly models that reach people outside the traditional food shelf system.

Check Your Eligibility for This Minnesota Local Food Distribution Grant

The Grantaura eligibility tool walks you through the qualification criteria for the Farm to Food Security Grant in sequence. It covers entity type, operational requirements, project scope, and the financial conditions that determine whether you'll need cash match. Answer based on your actual situation rather than what you hope applies. Edge cases - co-mingled funding from other programs, board member conflicts, school meal program adjacency, or complex multi-organization structures - are where a checklist runs out of usefulness and a human review becomes necessary.

If the tool confirms you're eligible, that's the starting point, not the finish line. In a pool this competitive - with $1.295 million across 15 to 40 awards and a 100-point scoring rubric that rewards very specific language and documentation - eligibility alone does not get you funded. Most rejections happen in how applications are written, not whether the organization qualifies. The rubric scores your narrative against eight weighted categories, and reviewers know the difference between a distribution plan that describes your usual operations and one that demonstrates specific connections to people the traditional emergency food system doesn't reach. Our experts review the actual text of your application before it reaches MDA, catching phrasing that undersells your project, budget line items that won't survive scrutiny, and missing documents that would have caused rejection.

If your eligibility has an edge case - co-mingled purchasing, a board member conflict, school program adjacency - don't guess and submit. Book a free consultation with a Grantaura specialist and work through it before you commit to the full application.

If you're not eligible for F2FS, there are other Minnesota food and agriculture funding streams worth exploring. Grantaura's matched grants tool can surface better-fit opportunities.

What the Grant Funds: Food Categories, Origin Rules, and the Source Preservation Trap

F2FS is a food purchasing grant. The core use of funds is buying Minnesota-grown food and giving it away free to people experiencing food insecurity. But what qualifies as "Minnesota food" is more specific than most applicants expect, and getting this wrong creates reimbursement problems after the award is made.

Eligible food categories include whole and minimally processed items: fruits, vegetables, herbs, meat, fish, poultry, dairy, eggs, legumes, grains, maple syrup, and honey. Processed foods are also eligible, but they must contain at least one primary ingredient (excluding water) that is 80% grown or raised in Minnesota. Examples of eligible processed items include hot dogs and sausages, tofu, bread, tortillas, granola, soups, sauces, and jams.

A few items are ineligible regardless of origin. Pre-made prepared meals cannot be purchased with grant funds, though you can use purchased ingredients to prepare meals for recipients after distribution. Products from registered cottage food producers are not eligible because those producers don't meet the food business licensing requirements for distributions under this program. Food that would supplement federally reimbursed meal programs (NSLP, SBP, SFSP, CACFP) is also ineligible as covered earlier.

Source Preservation: The Documentation Requirement Most Applicants Miss

This is the most underexplained requirement in this grant, and it has real financial consequences if you get it wrong after the award. When you buy food through an intermediary - a food hub, distributor, aggregator, or farmers' market - your reimbursement invoices must show the name and location of the specific origin farm. Not just the vendor name. The actual farm.

Most distributors don't include this automatically. If you sign a purchasing agreement with a food hub without confirming invoice format first, you may end up with invoices that name the distributor but not the farms. MDA will not reimburse expenses documented that way. You'd need either a written attestation from the vendor certifying Minnesota origin for each product, or you forfeit that reimbursement.

The fix is straightforward but must happen before your contract starts: ask every distributor or food hub explicitly whether their standard invoices identify the origin farm name and location for each product. If they don't, ask whether they'll provide a written attestation. Get that commitment in writing before you sign any purchasing agreement.

If you're buying directly from individual farmers, this is simpler. The farmer is the origin. Direct purchase invoices from named farmers with their location on record satisfy the requirement without any additional attestation.

Q: Can we buy food through a food hub or distributor?
A: Yes. Food bought through food hubs, distributors, aggregators, or farmers' markets is eligible as long as it meets the 80% MN-grown standard and source preservation is documented. Source preservation means your purchase documentation - typically the invoice - must identify the specific origin farm by name and location. If the intermediary vendor can't provide that on their standard invoices, you need a written attestation from them confirming MN origin. Confirm your vendor's invoice format before you purchase anything, not after.

Administrative Cost Rules and the Cash Flow Reality

Up to 15% of total project costs can cover administrative expenses: food storage, food transportation (when not built into the food price), personnel time directly tied to the project, travel, and technical assistance for farmers. General organizational overhead and indirect costs don't qualify.

The bigger issue for many organizations is cash flow. Every dollar gets paid on reimbursement. You spend, you document, you submit, MDA reviews, then you get paid. For organizations running close to their operating reserves, this creates real strain on food storage and logistics costs especially. If your organization has less than two to three months of operating runway without the reimbursement, factor that into your request size decision. Requesting under $50,000 with no match requirement keeps your upfront exposure lower.

How Applications Are Scored: The Full 100-Point Rubric

The scoring rubric is on pages 25-26 of the RFP and reviewers use it to evaluate every application. Most competing information sources don't publish this breakdown. Applications that aren't written directly to these criteria will leave points on the table even when the underlying project is genuinely strong.

Food procurement and farmer assistance (15 points) specifically rewards formal purchasing agreements, not informal relationships. A strong application names the farmers or farmer types you'll work with, describes how you'll set fair prices (quotes, contracts, market-rate benchmarks), and explains any technical assistance you'll provide. "We plan to source locally" scores poorly here. "We have signed letters of intent from [named producers] and will establish purchase agreements covering minimum quantities, pricing methodology, and delivery schedules" scores well.

Food distribution (15 points) rewards projects that reach people the traditional food shelf system doesn't. Applications that describe standard food shelf operations score lower than those naming specific underserved populations - Tribal communities, rural households without nearby food shelf access, immigrant communities with cultural food preferences, homebound individuals, households that face barriers to formal food assistance systems. Name the populations, name the partners, name the distribution sites.

Priority areas (10 points) are worth understanding before you finalize your sourcing plan. Up to 5 points for committing to 100% Minnesota sourcing. Up to 5 more points for sourcing 70% or more from farmers with "limited land access" or "limited market access" as defined by Minnesota Statutes section 17.133, subdivision 1. Limited market access means the farmer sells less than $100,000 in farm products per year. Limited land access means no owned farmland, with short-term lease arrangements only. If you're working with beginning farmers or small producers, these points may be within reach - but you need to document the status explicitly, not just assert it.

Note for former LFPA grantees: Most food organizations have never executed formal written purchasing contracts with individual farmers. LFPA didn't require them. F2FS scoring rewards them specifically. If your relationships with farmers have been informal to date, formalizing them before you apply - not after - is one of the highest-ROI things you can do for your application score.

What You Must Submit: Letters, Documents, and Financial Records

This is where a lot of well-prepared organizations fall apart. The document requirements are layered, some are conditional on your request size, and at least one is mandatory that many applicants treat as optional.

Letters of Support: What Is Mandatory vs. Encouraged

Every application, regardless of size, must include at least one letter of support from a Minnesota farmer or food producer who will benefit from the project. This is not a nice-to-have. Without it, the application is incomplete and will not be evaluated.

Beyond the mandatory farmer letter, two conditional requirements apply. If you plan to buy food through a food hub or distributor rather than directly from farmers, you must include a letter from that food hub or distributor identifying the specific farms they source from. If you are not distributing food directly to individuals but working through another organization to handle distribution, you must include a letter from that distribution partner.

All formal collaborators - organizations with defined roles in your project - must provide commitment letters, not just support letters. A commitment letter binds participation. A support letter endorses the project but doesn't obligate the signer. Reviewers see the difference.

Gather these letters well before the deadline. A farmer who commits verbally in February may not have time or capacity to write a formal letter in the final days before March 31. Build letter collection as a discrete task with an internal deadline two weeks before the application due date.

Financial Documents for Awards at or Above $50,000

If MDA advances your application to the phase-two pre-award risk assessment, what they request depends on your entity type and request size. For requests under $50,000, requirements are minimal: debarment certification and proof of Secretary of State standing.

For requests at or above $50,000, the documentation request goes deeper. Nonprofits must provide their two most recent Form 990s or Form 990-EZs (or financial statements and internal control documentation if they haven't filed these). Organizations with total revenue above $750,000 must also provide their two most recent certified financial audits. For-profit businesses must submit two years of federal and state tax returns plus financial statements including balance sheets and income statements. All entities must certify no debarment, no felony financial crimes among principals, and Secretary of State good standing.

Gather these documents before you apply - not after you're notified of phase-two advancement. Being contacted in May and having 15 days to produce two years of audited financials is a real scenario under this program's timeline, and a scramble at that stage is how awards get forfeited.

Application Timeline for the MDA Farm to Food Security Grant 2026

The window from RFP posting to application deadline is six weeks. That's tight for a 38-page RFP with detailed budget tables, character-limited narrative sections, a mandatory work plan, and external letters to collect. If you haven't started yet, you're not early - you're on time at best.

One underused resource: the MDA Q&A page for this grant. Submit your questions by March 24 to MDA.AGRIGrants@state.mn.us with "Farm to Food Security Grant Question" in the subject line. MDA posts all answers publicly, so other applicants benefit too. If you discover eligibility ambiguities or requirement uncertainties near the question deadline, submitting early gives you time to adjust your application. Waiting until March 30 leaves no room for course correction.

After the project ends, you have 60 calendar days to submit remaining reimbursement requests. Post-award, your grant contract must be signed within 30 calendar days of being sent to you - failure to sign within that window can result in the award being rescinded. Complete your IRS W-9 and register as a vendor in SWIFT (the state's accounting and payment system) before contract execution. State payments cannot be issued until SWIFT registration is complete.

How to Apply: The GrantInterface Process and the Portal Label Problem

Applications go through GrantInterface, the MDA's online system. New users must create an account before accessing the application form - do this before the final week of March. The MDA recommends submitting at least 24 hours before the deadline because they cannot guarantee technical support for last-minute system issues. The deadline is hard; they will not make exceptions for technical problems on the applicant's end.

After you submit, a confirmation email should arrive within a few hours. If it doesn't, contact MDA immediately. Don't assume submission went through. Incomplete applications are rejected without evaluation. MDA will not review materials submitted outside the application system and will not accept supplemental documents that weren't requested in the RFP.

Q: What if I have a technical problem on the deadline day?
A: The MDA explicitly states they are not responsible for technical or logistical problems resulting in a late submission. The deadline is hard. If you hit a GrantInterface issue near March 31, call 651-201-6500 immediately. The safest approach is to have a complete, reviewable draft in the system 24 to 48 hours before the deadline - not the afternoon of.

What Separates Funded Applications From Rejected Ones

The LFPA program received 50 proposals against a $3.5 million pool in its first Minnesota round and funded 33. F2FS has roughly one-third of that budget. If application volume is similar, rejection rates will be meaningfully higher. That's not a reason to skip applying - it's a reason to apply strategically.

Named farmer relationships win over stated intentions. Applications that identify specific farmers or producer groups, with letters of commitment to prove it, score better in both the food procurement category and the letters of support category. "We will identify farmers after the award" is a weak position. Finding your farmer partners before the application closes is one of the most direct ways to improve your score.

Distribution specificity matters more than distribution volume. The program exists to reach people who don't use traditional food shelves. Applications that describe serving populations with named specificity - Tribal communities, rural households without food shelf access, immigrant communities with cultural food preferences, people who face barriers to formal food assistance systems - score higher in the distribution category. Named partners, named communities, named distribution sites outperform general descriptions every time.

Food variety signals program alignment. The budget scoring category rewards purchasing a variety of agricultural products including culturally relevant foods, specialty crops, meat, poultry, and value-added items - from a variety of producer types. A single-product budget from one or two large suppliers is a weak budget regardless of how strong the rest of the application is.

Sustainability beyond June 2028 is explicitly scored. Reviewers assess whether your project creates lasting relationships and market opportunities that outlive the grant period. The question "what happens after the contract ends?" should have a genuine answer in your work plan, not a placeholder.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Farm to Food Security Grant Minnesota

Q: Can for-profit businesses apply for this grant?
A: Yes. For-profit businesses are an explicitly eligible applicant type. For requests at or above $50,000, they face pre-award documentation requirements: two years of federal and state tax returns, financial statements, debarment certification, and disclosure of any liens on assets. For-profit applicants must also certify they are not under bankruptcy proceedings.

Q: Can an individual person apply without being part of an organization?
A: Yes. Individuals are eligible applicants. In practice this typically means a farmer or food entrepreneur with the capacity to purchase Minnesota-grown food and distribute it at no cost to food-insecure recipients. Individual applicants face the same pre-award risk assessment requirements that scale with request size as any other entity type.

Q: Can we use grant funds to pay our own staff time?
A: Yes, as an eligible administrative expense - but only for time directly tied to project activities like coordinating farmer purchases, managing distribution, or compiling grant reporting. General organizational overhead doesn't qualify. Staff time must be documented with timesheets or payroll records. All personnel and fringe expenses are counted within the 15% administrative cost ceiling.

Q: Are cottage food producers eligible to sell to us under this program?
A: No. Processed foods from registered cottage food producers are explicitly listed as ineligible purchases under F2FS because those producers don't meet the food business licensing requirements for distributions under this program. If a farmer you want to work with sells some products through a cottage food operation, those specific products cannot be purchased with grant funds.

Q: What does "limited market access" mean for the priority scoring?
A: Limited market access is a statutory designation under Minnesota Statutes 17.133, subdivision 1. It applies to farmers who sell less than $100,000 of farm products per year. If you can document that 70% or more of your food purchases come from farmers meeting this definition - or the "limited land access" definition (no owned land, short-term leases only) - your application earns up to 5 additional priority scoring points. Document which specific farmer partners meet the threshold. Assertion without documentation does not earn the points.

Q: Can we distribute food through a school?
A: Yes, with one hard restriction. Food can be distributed through schools, early childcare centers, and senior centers, but it cannot supplement or replace food distributed as part of federally reimbursed meal programs (NSLP, School Breakfast Program, Summer Food Service Program, or CACFP). The F2FS food must go to people with demonstrated food insecurity entirely separate from those program meals. Document clearly how the F2FS distribution is distinct from any federally reimbursed meal service if your project involves school sites.

Q: What is the phase-two review process and how quickly do we need to respond?
A: MDA staff contact advancing applicants directly and request financial documentation for the pre-award risk assessment. What they ask for depends on entity type and award size. Based on the formal RFP timeline, phase two occurs in May 2026. Applicants typically have 15 calendar days to respond once contacted. Having your financial documents assembled before you apply - not after notification - is the only reliable way to avoid losing an award to a documentation scramble.

Q: What happens if we can't document where our food came from?
A: You won't be reimbursed for that expense. MDA requires invoices that identify the origin farm by name and location, or a written vendor attestation certifying Minnesota origin when farm-level detail isn't on the invoice. If you can't provide one of those two things for a purchase, that expense is ineligible. This is the most common documentation failure in programs structured this way, and it's almost always preventable if you confirm vendor invoice formats before signing purchasing agreements.

Key Terms for This Minnesota Food Security Grant Program

• Source Preservation: The requirement that the origin of food purchased through this grant remains traceable through the entire supply chain to the point of distribution. For purchases through food hubs, distributors, or aggregators, invoices must identify the specific origin farm by name and location. If the invoice doesn't include this, a written attestation from the vendor is required. This rule enforces the Minnesota-grown standard and is the most common documentation failure in programs structured this way.
• Limited Market Access: A designation under Minnesota Statutes 17.133, subdivision 1 for farmers who sell less than $100,000 of farm products per year. Sourcing 70% or more of project food from these farmers earns up to 5 priority scoring points. Applicants must document which farmer partners meet this revenue threshold - not just assert it.
• Limited Land Access: A paired designation under the same statute for farmers who do not own farmland and lease or rent on a short-term basis (three years or less) from someone who is not a close family member, or from an incubator farm. These are often beginning farmers without an established land base. Sourcing from limited land access farmers counts toward the same 70% priority threshold as limited market access farmers.
• Minimally Processed Foods: Foods that have gone through methods like cooling, freezing, size adjustments (slicing, dicing, chopping), drying or dehydration, washing, packaging, butchering, or cleaning fish - without additives that change their fundamental character. These count as "whole or minimally processed" for the 80% MN-origin threshold and don't require the additional attestation process that processed foods require.
• Processed Foods (Grant Definition): Foods changed from their original state beyond minimally processed methods. For this grant, eligible processed foods must contain at least one primary ingredient (excluding water) that is 80% grown or raised in Minnesota. Examples include bread, sausages, tofu, granola, and sauces. Vendors must provide written attestation confirming the primary MN-origin ingredient when purchasing these items.
• Pre-Award Risk Assessment: The second phase of MDA's review process, applied to applications advancing from phase one. MDA evaluates the applicant's financial capacity and past performance before formalizing an award. For requests at or above $50,000, this phase triggers detailed financial document requests including 990s, tax returns, or financial statements depending on entity type. Applicants have 15 calendar days to respond once contacted.
• 1:1 Cash Match: A requirement where for every grant dollar requested above $50,000, the grantee must contribute an equal dollar from non-state-grant sources. A $100,000 request at the maximum award level requires $50,000 in verified cash match, bringing total documented project cost to at least $150,000. In-kind donations do not count toward cash match.
• Administrative Costs (Grant Context): All project expenses other than the actual food purchase costs. Eligible items include food storage, food transportation (when not built into food prices), personnel time directly tied to the project, travel, and technical assistance for farmers. Cannot exceed 15% of total project costs and are reimbursed pro-rata alongside food expenses - you cannot front-load admin reimbursements.
• Reimbursement-Based Grant: A payment structure where grantees spend their own money first and then submit documented invoices to the funder for repayment. No funds are disbursed before eligible expenses are incurred and documented. For this grant, both proof of purchase (invoices, receipts) and proof of payment (bank statements, cleared checks) are required for each reimbursement claim.
• Grant Contract Agreement: The formal legal document that activates an F2FS award. No grant expenses can be incurred before the contract is fully executed and the authorized representative has confirmed work may begin. Post-award, grantees have 30 calendar days to sign the contract or risk having the award rescinded. Changes to project scope, budget, or key personnel during the grant period may require a formal contract amendment.
• GrantInterface: The online application portal used by MDA for this and other grant programs. New users must create an account before accessing the application. Applications must be submitted through GrantInterface - no emailed or mailed applications are accepted. A confirmation email should arrive after submission; if it doesn't, contact MDA immediately and do not assume submission succeeded.
• Project Evaluation Profile: The public scoring rubric that MDA reviewers use to evaluate every application. It covers pages 25-26 of the RFP and breaks the 100 available points across eight categories. Applicants who write their narratives directly to this rubric's language and criteria consistently outperform those who describe their project in general terms and hope for the best.
• SWIFT (Statewide Integrated Financial Tools): Minnesota's state accounting and payment system. Post-award grantees must register as a vendor in SWIFT before any reimbursement payments can be issued. This also requires a current IRS W-9 form. Starting the registration process as soon as an award is confirmed avoids delays in receiving the first reimbursement.
• Food Insecurity (Policy Definition): For this grant, food insecurity means limited or uncertain access to enough nutritious food to maintain a healthy life. The program specifically prioritizes reaching people whose needs are not met through the "traditional emergency food system" - meaning standard food banks and food shelves. Projects that serve populations outside that mainstream network score higher in the distribution category.
• Traditional Emergency Food System: The network of food banks, food shelves, and similar emergency food providers that forms the baseline of hunger relief infrastructure in Minnesota. This program was intentionally designed to reach people this network doesn't serve well - whether due to geographic barriers, cultural food preferences, distrust of formal systems, or other factors. Applications must explicitly identify and address this gap.
• Food Hub or Aggregator: An intermediary organization that aggregates food from multiple farms and makes it available to buyers. Food bought through a food hub is eligible under F2FS as long as source preservation documentation is maintained. If a food hub cannot identify the origin farms for their products, purchases through them are not reimbursable under this grant.
• Culturally Relevant Foods: Foods that are meaningful to the specific communities an organization serves - including traditional foods important to Native American Tribal communities, staple foods for immigrant communities, or items that reflect the dietary practices of the local population. The scoring rubric rewards budget plans that include culturally relevant foods alongside standard commodity items.
• TEFAP (The Emergency Food Assistance Program): A federal program distributing USDA-purchased commodities through food banks and food shelves. F2FS food can be distributed at sites that also participate in TEFAP, but F2FS-funded food must be tracked separately and not commingled with TEFAP commodities in ways that lose its identification as F2FS-purchased. If your organization participates in TEFAP, your internal controls section should describe how you'll maintain that separation.
• Vendor Attestation: A written certification from a food distributor or manufacturer confirming that their product meets Minnesota-grown definitions when the origin farm is not identifiable directly from the invoice. Required when purchasing processed foods or when buying through an intermediary whose invoices don't identify the origin farm. This is the alternative to origin farm identification on the invoice itself - both are acceptable forms of source preservation documentation.

Get Expert Help Building a Stronger Farm to Food Security Grant Application

About Imran - Grantaura Founder

Imran founded Grantaura with a clear goal: make grant funding more accessible to the organizations and communities that need it most, not just the ones with dedicated grant writers on staff. He understands that small food organizations, Tribal entities, farmers' markets, and community cooperatives often have the strongest projects and the least capacity to navigate complex state application processes. The Farm to Food Security Grant is exactly the kind of program where the quality of the application, not just the quality of the project, determines who gets funded. Grantaura exists to close that gap.

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