Grants Help New Minnesota Farmers Tackle Challenges

It is well documented how difficult farming can be. To be honest, the word difficult doesn’t seem like it truly accurately describes what farmers face. 

Battling the weather, which they can’t control, is one of the biggest challenges they face. How much things cost is another major aspect of farming which can add stress to farmers. Everything from what they feed their animals if they have any, to what they use to grow what they grow is costing them more. 

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Then of course there’s the equipment they use or need to make their jobs easier or more successful. 

That is why the Minnesota Department of Agriculture worked to create a grant program to provide funds for new farmers to use towards equipment called the Beginning Farmer Equipment and Infrastructure Grant. 

Farmers had to be just starting out in farming and live and farm in Minnesota. They also had to be in good standing with the state.  

Those who got the grants were selected through an evaluation process by a committee that was assembled to consider each request. 

Individual awards of up to $20,000 were given for a wide range of requests, such as: 

• 16 applicants asked for fencing assistance 

• Specialty Crop Equipment was requested by 15 applicants 

• 11 farmers requested funding for a variety of tractor needs 

• Livestock chutes for 9 farmers as well as feeding and watering requests by others 

• Water access improvements and irrigation equipment for 8 farmers 

• New infrastructure needs such as high tunnels, equipment storage and walk-in coolers for others 

• Improvements for existing structures like barns and feed lots 

• Various other needs like a hay baler, GPS for tractors, bee hives, a soybean head, and Christmas Tree farm equipment 

For the farmers who got the money, I’m sure they’re grateful. The downside to this story is that 1,100 farmers requested money that totaled well over $18 million dollars. 

The requests exceeded the money that was earmarked for this program. This was the first year for this funding that was made available by legislative funding.