WSDA Announces New Round Of Hunger Relief Grants

The Washington State Department of Agriculture is out with a new round of hunger relief grants. The WSDA’s Hector Castro, said the funding for the Resiliency Grant Program comes from state lawmakers, via the federal American Rescue Plan funds.

"Since the pandemic struck, there's been a lot of pressure on hunger relief organizations around the state to meet the increased need for assistance.”

Castro noted the grants are designed to support organizations with a focus on food insecurity and hunger relief, adding the grants will fund, initiatives and efforts for a specific period of time.

"The period of performance for which those projects need to be completed is July 1st of this year through June 30th of next year. Certainly an organization that has applied previously, can apply again,"

Applications are accepted through June 10^th.

Funding objectives include:

Collaborations – To implement or strengthen regional systems, such as new county partnerships, inter-regional collaboration, and food hubs.
Local purchasing – To strengthen local systems, invest in local businesses and local agriculture.
Service operation efficiencies and expanded capacity – To support staffing, equipment, capital improvement projects, and other vital resources needed to continue and expand services as needed.
Client experience enhancement – To support equity, client choice models, home and expanded delivery options, increased client access, culturally relevant foods, as well as software, translation, and other concepts or innovations that improve the client experience.

Grant categories include:

Equipment and installation costs up to $4,999.99 – through our partnership with Harvest Against Hunger, up to $400,000 worth of eligible equipment and installation projects will be funded.
Contracted hunger relief organizations – at least 30 percent of awards will be to organizations who currently participate in WSDA Food Assistance programs.
Regional Distribution Organizations – at least 20 percent of awards will be to organizations qualifying as RDOs with projects related to those functions.
Hunger relief organizations not currently contracted with WSDA Food Assistance – at least 30 percent of awards will be to organizations who do not currently participate in WSDA Food Assistance programs.

To learn more about this new round of grants, visit the WSDA's Website.

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