Join us August 7-15 for a series of courses presented by the CDFA Training Institute. CDFA Virtual Summer School will offer five different training courses, all held online. Learn from our expert practitioners and experience CDFA's most interactive educational event of the year – all from the comfort of your home or office! All CDFA Virtual Summer School courses qualify for the CDFA Training Institute's Development Finance Certified Professional (DFCP) Program.

Greater Commercial Lending, which provides government-guaranteed loans to businesses and organizations in under-served and rural communities, has completed $36.7 million in financing for Pure Prairie Poultry in Charles City, Iowa. The loan package, guaranteed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) through the Food Supply Chain Guaranteed Loan Program, will help renovate and expand the existing poultry processing plant and purchase additional equipment to ramp up operations to full capacity.

The U.S. Department of Transportation announced that its Build America Bureau has provided a $45 million low-interest loan to the Oklahoma Capital Improvement Authority (OCIA), on behalf of the Oklahoma Department of Transportation (ODOT) to improve rural road safety.

One project receiving funding in Kentucky is the Meat and Poultry Intermediary Lending Program, spearheaded by Community Ventures Corporation. The initiative will receive $10 million to establish a revolving loan fund aimed at supporting the startup, expansion, and ongoing operations of meat processors throughout the state. By providing additional financing options, the revolving loan fund seeks to increase the processing capacity of Kentucky's meat and poultry industry, ensuring its resilience, diversity, and security.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Rural Utility Service will open on June 30 its platform for letters of interest for a $1 billion loan forgiveness program for renewable energy projects that will serve a mostly rural population. The window will remain open until September 29. USDA will then invite selected applicants to submit a full application. Projects that use wind, solar, hydropower, geothermal, or biomass generation are eligible under the Powering Affordable Clean Energy program.

U.S. Senator Joe Manchin, member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, announced more than $17 million from the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development program for seven projects across West Virginia. This funding will support renovating a building into a health clinic to expand Boone Memorial Hospital, upgrading water infrastructure, rehabilitating a housing complex, constructing a new health department facility, and purchasing city vehicles.

Following a tour of the Hopi Tribe's Keams Canyon Water Project, Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland announced a $48 million investment from President Biden's Investing in America agenda to repair and revitalize Tribal water sanitation systems, upgrade irrigation and power projects and invest in the safety of dams in Tribal communities.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the availability of $500 million in funding to advance partner-driven solutions to conservation on agricultural land through the Department's Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). RCPP leverages a voluntary approach to conservation that expands the reach of conservation efforts and climate-smart agriculture through public-private partnerships.

CDFA-Bricker Webinar Series: National Updates for C-PACE Financing
June 21, 2023 - 2:00 PM - 4:00 PM Eastern

CDFA Food Systems Finance Webinar Series: Targeted Tools & Food Systems
June 27, 2023 - 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM Eastern

>>> VIEW THE RURAL DEVELOPMENT FINANCE RESOURCE CENTER   

Funding Sources for Food-Related Businesses includes sources of local, regional, and national finance opportunities that may be available to producers, distributors, food hubs, and food-related businesses. Initially informed by a list of funding resources for food-related businesses found on the Food+Tech Connect website, a media and research company building a network for food innovators and entrepreneurs, this listing has been expanded and updated by the Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems to help support local food systems.

>>> SEARCH RURAL DEVELOPMENT RESOURCES