USDA AMS Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program Grant OPEN
What does this program do?
The Meat and Poultry Processing Expansion Program (MPPEP) provides grants to help eligible processors expand their capacity. USDA Rural Development designed the MPPEP to encourage competition.
Sole proprietor businesses or other entities that engage - or want to engage - in meat and poultry processing.
Grant funds can be used to expand processing capacity by supporting activities such as:
· Building new - or modernizing or expanding existing - processing facilities
· Developing, installing, or modernizing equipment and technology
· Ensuring compliance with packaging and labeling requirements
· Upholding occupational and other safety requirements
· Modifying facilities or equipment to protect food safety
· Paying for voluntary grading services on value-added processed products
· Offsetting costs associated with becoming an inspected facility
· Supporting workforce recruitment, training, and retention
The maximum award amount is $25 million, or 20 percent of total project costs, whichever is less. There is no minimum award amount.
Eligible applicants must:
Process - or plan to process - one or more species subject to the Federal Meat Inspection Act, or the Poultry Product Inspection Act.
Have - or plan to get - a Federal Grant of Inspection through USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service, a Grant of Inspection under the Cooperative Interstate Shipment Program, or a federal equivalent Tribal or state-based meat and poultry inspection program
Comply with the National Environmental Policy Act and Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, and all other applicable state, local or Tribal laws.
More information about this grant program can be found on the USDA Rural Development website: https://www.rd.usda.gov/progra...
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December 19, 2025
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2025 Cornell Food Beverage & Animal Feed Manufacturer Survey
December 19, 2025
Industry and Educational Advocates for New York State's Food, Beverage, and Animal Feed Manufacturing industries:
As you know, NYS has a diverse food and beverage manufacturing industry, in both the types of industries that exist and the wide distribution of firms by scale. Many manufacturing firms have strong backward linkages to agricultural production sectors in the state that support both farm-level and downstream food industry firms and consumers. In collaboration with the New York State Department of Agriculture and Markets, a team from Cornell University's Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management has recently rolled out the 2025 New York State Food, Beverage, and Animal Feed Manufacturer Survey. The industry will benefit from an updated assessment of the industry that informs private and public investments and opportunities to support firm growth and improved profitability.
Cornell Organic Field Crops & Dairy Conference
March 6, 2026
Waterloo, NY
Farmers, researchers, educators, and agricultural service providers from across the Northeast are invited to the 2026 Cornell Organic Field Crops & Dairy Conference, held Friday, March 6, 2026, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Lux Hotel & Conference Center in Waterloo, N.Y.
Co-hosted by New York Soil Health and Cornell CALS, the annual conference brings together leaders in organic grain, dairy, and livestock systems to share practical tools, new research, and farmer-tested strategies to support resilient and profitable organic production.
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