MARBIDCO offers two levels of grant funding for food aggregation projects.

Small-Scale Farmer Entity Aggregation Project

• A grant of between $25,000 and $100,000 is available. 

• Applicants for the small-scale farmer-led aggregation grant must include at least four Certified Local Farm and Certified Chesapeake Invasive Species Providers and applicants must provide at least a 20% match of private funds in the project.

• An example of a small-scale aggregation entity could include an Agricultural Product Aggregation and Distribution Entity, an entity (including a farming operation aggregator) that is working with at least 4 farms (or 3 if the applicant is a farm) that can expand to meet institutional/wholesale demand. Another example of a small-scale farmer aggregation entity could be a legally organized farm cooperative.

• The applicant must provide evidence that it will be selling some quantity of product to a specific wholesale or institutional buyer. Evidence could be in the form of a contract or letter of commitment, which specifies it will purchase a certain amount of product.

Public Sector Aggregation Project

• A grant of between $150,000 and $300,000 is available.

• Applicants for the larger-scale aggregation grant will be a public entity such as a county government, municipality, community college, university, county school system, or rural regional council.

• The grant is for public projects that plan to be primarily aggregation centers for wholesale and institutional buyers. 

• If the applicant is the buyer, it would need to provide a commitment to purchase from at least four Certified Local Farm and Certified Chesapeake Invasive Species Providers and include what it plans to purchase and the amount of each product.

• If the applicant is facilitating the aggregation, it would also need to provide evidence that it will aggregate produce from at least four Certified Local Farm and Certified Chesapeake Invasive Species Providers and provide a commitment from a wholesaler or institutional buyer to purchase from the aggregation center.

• The grant requires at least a 20% match of funds in the project. A project of this size might also require a partnership of multiple entities and funding sources.

What is an Institutional Buyer or Wholesale Buyer?

An institutional buyer could include a state or local government agency (including a correctional institution), school system, hospital, or chain of grocery stores. A wholesale buyer is a food distributor that has an established track record of selling food products to the institutions generally described above. The Maryland Department of Agriculture provides a list of some institutional buyers in its publication, Maryland’s Best Expo Directory. Information can be found at https://marylandsbest.maryland.gov/wp-content/uploads/MBestExpoDirectory_web3-20.pdf.