The 2024 VAPG Notice of Funding was just announced! Jim Gage recommends you get organized and make a plan.
Principal — James D. Gage Consulting, Inc
Announced on January 17, the 2024 USDA Value Added producer Grant offers a unique opportunity for agricultural entrepreneurs to compete for planning and working grant funds. Fortunately, this year USDA is providing a 90-day writing period to grant submission.
There are multiple ways to complete this task. JDG Consulting and the Food Finance Institute suggest that you think about the 90-day period as three separate one-month periods: (a) research, planning, and eligibility; (b) writing and document organization; and (c) editing, reviewing, and submitting the final document.
- Month 1 – Research, planning, and eligibility:
- Organize/download all government forms, apply for the UEI and SAM. Look at all eligibility elements of the proposal – are there any points that may make you ineligible? If you have any questions, email/call your state USDA desk officer. Do you need a business plan or feasibility study as part of the VAPG submission? If so, outline the document, determine what information you need, and seek assistance for technical issues. Remember a Feasibility Study needs to be a third-party analysis written by a qualified consultant. Gather research/trends related to your project. Are there national, state, or regional data germane to your writing? Do you have your company data that is applicable, or special sources of information that can be used (documented in a letter of support)?
- Take a first shot at outlining some of the main sections of the proposal. Create a list of recommendation letters. Draft first ideas on a workplan and budget. List your team members and bullet point their qualifications. Determine your value-added methodology status and how you will expand the market. Bullet point ideas about the nature of your proposed venture (four questions). What stands out as strong elements of the proposal? What is currently lacking?
- Month 2 – Write a first draft of the proposal
- The VAPG proposal is a mix of major writing tasks and minor writing tasks. By the end of the month, you should have all tasks on paper in draft form. Identify the minor writing tasks – these are in the eligibility section, and the written statements that you will need for match verification, priority points, etc. Is it clear what is needed for these sections – if not, check with the state USDA desk officer. Draft the following sections needed for scoring the proposal: Nature of the Proposed Venture (30 pts); Qualifications (20 pts); Commitment and Support (10 pts); and Workplan and Budget (20 pts). Consider the Administrative Points question (10 pts) and whether you can provide some justification for that question.
- Whether you are drafting the document for the first time, revising an old document, or working with a consulting team, make sure that your Business Plan and/or Feasibility Study documents are on track to be finished by the application deadline. Additionally, determine what information is these documents should be summarized and presented in the body of the VAPG application.
- Month 3 – Edit, review and submit:
- Take 1-2 days off before you start the editing and review process. Request your USDA desk officer to provide a final review of eligibility of the proposal – this should include the eligibility of workplan requests as part of the budget. Review the scoring pieces of the budget, and seek out someone with grant reviewing expertise to provide an approximate score that you might expect. As part of the review and editing, consider whether you have answered all the USDA specific questions, whether additional rationale is needed, and/or whether additional data is needed to support the writing (example: quotes from letters of support)Make sure that all letters of support are in hand by 2-3 weeks before the deadline so that quotes can be incorporated. Finalize the letter summary table. Write the executive summary. Fill in the program income table – check with state USDA desk officer for instructions as needed. Re-check budget numbers and calculations in the Workplan and Budget. Complete the workplan and budget summary table and description. With 2-3 weeks remaining, verify all match and priority point docs. With 1-2 weeks remaining, have an editor review for spelling, grammar, etc. With 1-2 weeks to go complete the final USDA forms (424 forms and others). DO NOT wait until the last day to complete forms.(for paper copy submission) With 2-3 days to go, print out all elements of the application. Check against the table of contents in the toolkit to make sure everything is there and in order.
- Overnight or hand-deliver to the appropriate USDA office.
Good luck with the VAPG!
