Small Farms Get Support

U.S. Department of Agriculture News Release

Small farms and agri-business are supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) by their Small Business Innovation Grant Program. The department, in collaboration with the local University of Hawaii (UH) Ag program, will be hosting an informational meeting June 27 at 9 a.m., at the Office of Hawaiian Affairs conference room at Kulana `Oiwi. Dr. Suresh Sivapathasun will be the guest speaker.

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program at the USDA makes competitively awarded grants to qualified small businesses to support high quality, advanced concepts research related to important scientific problems and opportunities in agriculture that could lead to significant public benefit if successful.

The objectives of the SBIR Program are to stimulate technological innovations in the private sector; strengthen the role of small businesses in meeting federal research and development needs; increase private sector commercialization of innovations derived from USDA-supported research and development efforts; and foster and encourage participation by women-owned and socially and economically disadvantaged small business firms in technological innovations.
Research categories include: Forests and Related Resources, Plant Production and Protection – Biology, Animal Production and Protection, Soil and Water Resources, Food Science and Nutrition, Rural Development, Aquaculture, Biofuels and Bio-based Products, Small Mid-Size Farms, Plant Production and Protection – Engineering. Over $21 million is set aside for this program.
The UH College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources Cooperative Extension Service-Molokai is the cooperating agency on-island.

For more information, please access the USDA-SBIR website at: csrees.usda.gov/funding/sbir/sbir.html