School districts and other eligible organizations in the Finger Lakes can apply for a new $10 million state grant round for school capital projects that help prepare and distribute meals made with New York farm products.
The fourth round of the Regional School Food Infrastructure Grant Program is open to the Finger Lakes, Southern Tier, Capital Region and Mohawk Valley, according to Gov. Kathy Hochul's announcement. Proposals are due Jan. 22, 2027, at 3 p.m.
Two of those regions will receive $5 million each in this round. The remaining regions will be served in a subsequent round, completing a five-year, $50 million program intended to reach every region of the state.
The program, announced in Hochul's 2023 State of the State address, has provided $30 million to organizations in six regions so far. The Department of Agriculture and Markets administers it.
Facilities must serve multiple school districts
Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations, municipalities, school districts and Boards of Cooperative Educational Services, or BOCES. Projects must be regional in focus and serve multiple districts, rather than a single school alone.
Grant money can cover capital projects supporting fresh-meal preparation and distribution, including aggregation and storage hubs and commissary-style kitchens. Facilities can allow organizations to collect, store, process and prepare farm products on site.
Proposals should improve meal preparation for kindergarten through grade 12 students, reduce food insecurity, expand markets for New York producers and strengthen the food system's resilience.
Funded facilities must also support their local communities, including workforce-development opportunities. Training can cover culinary arts, processing, safe food handling and storage, logistics and delivery, based on community needs.
The first funding round supported Western New York and the North Country. The second served Long Island and Central New York, and the third served New York City and the Mid-Hudson region. Four regions remain eligible for this and the final round.
Infrastructure supports farm-to-school meals
Hochul said the funding is intended to help schools cook from scratch with locally grown ingredients while creating more market opportunities for farmers. The infrastructure program complements the state's Universal School Meals Program, which provides access to school breakfast and lunch.
Agriculture Commissioner Richard Ball said the six regions already funded are developing facilities and equipment to increase scratch cooking and purchases from New York producers. State Sen. Michelle Hinchey said meal programs need storage, cooking and serving infrastructure, while Assemblywoman Donna Lupardo highlighted the Southern Tier's eligibility in this round.
The state also supports Nourish New York, the 30% New York State school-meal initiative, Farm-to-School, FreshConnect Fresh2You, Food Access Expansion grants, Farmers' Market Nutrition and Urban Farms and Community Gardens grants.
Executive Order 32 directs state agencies to increase purchases from New York farmers and producers to 30% of total food purchases within five years. Separately, Hochul committed $25 million to the New York State Grown & Certified Infrastructure, Technology, Research and Development Grant Program for producers, processors, distributors and others using New York ingredients.
Applicants for the school infrastructure round can find eligibility and application information through the state's announcement. The Jan. 22 deadline applies to this fourth round, which will select two regions for $5 million awards.
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