Let Farmers Fly › Federal › USDA Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG)
USDA Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG)
USDA Rural Development: Planning grants up to $50,000; working-capital grants up to $200,000 (FY2026 round); dollar-for-dollar match. The 2026 round closed April 22, 2026; the next round is not announced.
Verified Oct 14, 2026 against rd.usda.gov · Report a change
What it pays
Up to $50,000
Planning grants up to $50,000; working-capital grants up to $200,000 (FY2026 round); dollar-for-dollar match.
You pay first
See below
Matching funds equal to the grant.
Buy before approval?
N/A
Not applicable: equipment is not an allowable cost. · not confirmed
Drones
Excluded
Equipment purchase is an unallowable cost under the regulation, so a drone cannot be bought with the grant; the official text does not name drones, so the harness keeps this as not confirmed.
Who can apply
Independent producers, producer groups, cooperatives and majority-controlled producer businesses adding value to a raw product.
What it covers
Planning and working capital for value-added products; equipment purchase is an unallowable cost. · not confirmed
Drones: excluded
Equipment purchase is an unallowable cost under the regulation, so a drone cannot be bought with the grant; the official text does not name drones, so the harness keeps this as not confirmed.
Money and timing
Planning grants up to $50,000; working-capital grants up to $200,000 (FY2026 round); dollar-for-dollar match. Matching funds equal to the grant.
| Item | What the record says |
|---|---|
| Opens | Not stated |
| Deadline | Closed April 22, 2026; next round unknown. |
| When money arrives | Reimbursement of allowable costs. · not confirmed |
| Repayment | Not a loan; nothing to repay. |
| Equipment origin rules | Not applicable. · not confirmed |
The 2026 round closed April 22, 2026; the next round is not announced.
Paperwork
Business or marketing plan, matching-funds documentation. · not confirmed
Where this comes from
Every quoted line below was copied from the official page the research harness captured, and checked again against that capture when this site was built. Lines marked "not confirmed" elsewhere on this page have no quote yet.
| Fact | Official wording | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Program name | Value-Added Producer Grants | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Agency | Rural Development | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Kind of help | Value-Added Producer Grants | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Who can apply | Agricultural producers (including harvesters and steering committees) Agricultural producer groups Farmer- or rancher-cooperatives Majority-controlled producer-based business ventures | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Who can apply | Own and produce more than 50% of the raw commodity | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Status | Application Window: Closed | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Status | through 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET), April 22, 2026. | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Deadline | Application Window: Closed | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Deadline | through 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET), April 22, 2026. | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| What it pays | Planning Grants: Up to $50,000 | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| What it pays | Working Capital Grants: Up to $200,000 | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| What it pays | Matching Requirement: 1:1 match (100% of the grant amount) | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| You pay first | 1:1 match (100% of the grant amount), which may include cash or eligible in-kind contributions | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Repayment | Grants are awarded through a nationally competitive process | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
| Official page | Value-Added Producer Grants | rd.usda.gov · capture 192 | Oct 14, 2026 |
Record usda-rd-vapg v2, approved; automatic checks run Oct 15, 2026.
Ask about this program
Answers come only from the verified program records on this site. Every answer shows the agency's own words and the date we checked them. When the records don't say, it tells you to ask USDA Rural Development.
Not live yet: the assistant is being built. Until then, use the program pages and the contact on each one.