Search

To expand Minnesotans’ access to fresh and culturally appropriate foods, the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) has opened applications for its Good Food Access Program (GFAP) Equipment and Physical Improvement Grant.

The GFAP grant helps grocery stores and small food retailers purchase equipment or make physical improvements that will allow them to increase the availability of and access to affordable, nutritious, and culturally appropriate foods (including produce) for underserved communities in low- and moderate-income areas. The agency will award up to $935,000 in this round of funding, and applicants may request between $5,000 and $75,000 for their projects.

Examples of eligible projects include the purchase and installation costs of items like shelving, coolers, and freezers; mobile food markets; permanent infrastructure at farmers’ markets; or architectural work. Projects that demonstrate positive economic and health impacts on underserved communities will be prioritized for funding.

To be eligible, applicants must be located in or serve a census tract designated as a food desert or must serve a substantial subpopulation — such as the aging population, those living with a disability, or those in a low- or moderate-income census tract — who have low supermarket access. Tribal entities and organizations that serve Native American tribal communities are also eligible and encouraged to apply.

Applications are due by 4 p.m. Central Time on Thursday, January 16, 2025. For full eligibility requirements and details of the application process, review the request for proposal (RFP) found on the GFAP Equipment and Physical Improvement Grant webpage.

###

Media Contact
Allen Sommerfeld, MDA Communications
651-201-6185
Allen.Sommerfeld@state.mn.us

Online applications are now open for anyone wanting to grow or process hemp in Minnesota in 2025. A license from the Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is required for individuals and businesses.

Applications must be submitted by April 30, 2025, and a license is valid for the 2025 calendar year.

The application can be found on the MDA website. Along with the online form, first-time applicants and authorized representatives need to submit fingerprints and pass a criminal background check. These licenses are for growing and processing industrial hemp only. The hemp grower or processor application is not for the growth or sale of adult-use or medical cannabis. The application is also not intended for the sale of hemp-derived cannabinoid products. Adult-use cannabis information can be found on the Office of Cannabis Management website.

Growers and processors need to be aware of the following for 2025:

• All authorized representatives designated by the applicant must pass a criminal history background check prior to the issuance of a license.
• Every lot of hemp grown requires pre-harvest THC regulatory testing. Each official regulatory sample collected by the MDA will cost $100.
• The MDA licenses processors that handle raw hemp and initially process it by extraction, decortication, devitalization, crushing, or packaging, and the department will continue random inspections of processor locations.
• License fees will remain the same. The minimum cost of a grower license is $400. A processing license is a minimum of $500. A 5% license surcharge is being added to support the modernization of the MDA’s technology systems which will provide better online services and more efficient processing of applications.

While the deadline to apply or renew is April 30, 2025, those actively growing hemp plants indoors past December 31, 2024, must renew their license before expiration at the end of the year.

Questions about the MDA’s Industrial Hemp Program should be sent to hemp.mda@state.mn.us or 651-201-6600.

Background

Industrial hemp and adult-use cannabis are both types of the same plant, Cannabis sativa. They differ by the concentration level of the psychoactive compound tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) within the plant. Hemp has less than 0.3% THC, and levels above that are considered marijuana.

Minnesota operated under a hemp pilot program from 2016-2020. In 2021, the program began operating under a new, federally approved state plan that governs production and regulation.

###

Media Contact
Brittany Raveill, MDA Communications
651-201-6131
Brittany.Raveill@state.mn.us