Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NIFA SCRI 006671
The Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) Pre-applications opportunity (USDA NIFA SCRI 006671) is a mandatory grant program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under CFDA 10.309. Its core purpose is to fund research and extension efforts that tackle the most pressing needs of the U.S. specialty crop industry, as further defined in the program's Request for Applications (RFA), Part VIII, D. The focus is on practical, solutions-oriented work that helps sustain and strengthen specialty crop production and related systems, and it is explicitly intended to address issues that matter at a national scale or across regions and multiple states rather than narrowly local concerns.
The program supports projects that combine research and extension, meaning it is designed not only to generate new knowledge or technologies, but also to make sure the results are translated into usable practices, tools, or decision-making support that can be adopted by growers, supply chain partners, and other stakeholders. SCRI emphasizes challenges that affect "all components of food and agriculture" connected to specialty crops, and it recognizes both conventional and organic production systems. In practice, this framing typically points to topics like crop improvement, production efficiency, pest and disease management, food safety, postharvest handling, distribution, and other cross-cutting constraints that can limit the competitiveness and sustainability of specialty crop industries across different geographies.
This specific listing is for pre-applications, indicating an initial submission step that is usually used to screen concepts, encourage alignment with program priorities, and manage a competitive full-application process. Eligible applicants are broad and include Federal agencies, national laboratories, colleges and universities, research institutions and organizations, private organizations or corporations, State Agricultural Experiment Stations, Cooperative Extension Services, individuals, and collaborative groups made up of two or more of these entity types. This wide eligibility is consistent with SCRI's emphasis on multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional approaches, especially for problems that require coordinated research, on-the-ground validation, and active outreach to ensure adoption.
Key administrative details from the source data include an original closing date of December 10, 2018, and a creation date of November 7, 2018. The funding mechanism is a grant, the opportunity category is listed as mandatory, and the publishing agency is NIFA. The source data does not provide an award ceiling or the expected number of awards, so those details would typically need to be confirmed in the RFA or related program documents.Apply for USDA NIFA SCRI 006671
- The National Institute of Food and Agriculture in the agriculture sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) Pre-applications" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.309.
- This funding opportunity was created on 2018-11-07.
- Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-12-10. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Eligible applicants include: Others.
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Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) Pre-Applications (USDA NIFA SCRI 006671) - FAQs
1) What is this funding opportunity?
This opportunity is the Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) pre-applications listing (USDA NIFA SCRI 006671), a grant program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under CFDA 10.309.
2) What is the main purpose of SCRI?
The program is intended to fund research and extension efforts that address the most pressing needs of the U.S. specialty crop industry, as further defined in the Request for Applications (RFA), Part VIII, D. The emphasis is on practical, solutions-oriented work that helps sustain and strengthen specialty crop production and related systems.
3) What does SCRI mean by "research and extension" projects?
SCRI supports projects that combine research and extension. In other words, projects are expected not only to generate new knowledge, methods, or technologies, but also to translate results into usable practices, tools, or decision support that stakeholders can adopt (for example, growers, supply chain partners, and others connected to specialty crops).
4) Is the program focused on local or national needs?
SCRI is explicitly intended to address issues that matter at a national scale or across regions and multiple states, rather than narrowly local concerns.
5) What kinds of topics does SCRI generally support?
Based on the program description, SCRI targets challenges affecting specialty crops across "all components of food and agriculture" connected to specialty crops. The description points to areas such as crop improvement, production efficiency, pest and disease management, food safety, postharvest handling, distribution, and other cross-cutting constraints that can limit competitiveness and sustainability across geographies.
6) Does SCRI include both conventional and organic specialty crop systems?
Yes. The program description recognizes both conventional and organic production systems.
7) What is a "pre-application" in this opportunity?
This listing is for pre-applications, meaning there is an initial submission step. The description indicates this step is typically used to screen concepts, encourage alignment with program priorities, and manage a competitive full-application process.
8) Who is the administering/publishing agency?
The publishing agency is USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA).
9) What type of funding mechanism is used?
The funding mechanism is a grant.
10) What is the opportunity category?
The opportunity category is listed as mandatory.
11) What is the CFDA number for this program?
The program is listed under CFDA 10.309.
12) Who is eligible to apply?
Eligibility is broad and includes: Federal agencies, national laboratories, colleges and universities, research institutions and organizations, private organizations or corporations, State Agricultural Experiment Stations, Cooperative Extension Services, individuals, and collaborative groups made up of two or more of these entity types.
13) Are partnerships or multi-organization teams allowed?
Yes. The eligibility list includes collaborative groups made up of two or more eligible entity types, which aligns with the program's emphasis on multi-disciplinary and multi-institutional approaches.
14) What kinds of project approaches does SCRI emphasize?
The description highlights coordinated efforts that can include research, on-the-ground validation, and active outreach to ensure adoption of results. The program framing suggests proposals should be designed to move from discovery to practical use by stakeholders.
15) Where are the program priorities defined in more detail?
The description points applicants to the program's Request for Applications (RFA), specifically Part VIII, D, for the most detailed definition of the program's core purpose and priorities.
16) What is the original closing date for this listing?
The original closing date provided in the source data is December 10, 2018.
17) What is the creation date of this opportunity listing?
The creation date provided in the source data is November 7, 2018.
18) How much funding is available per award (award ceiling)?
The source data provided does not include an award ceiling. That detail would typically be confirmed in the RFA or related program documents.
19) How many awards are expected?
The source data provided does not include the expected number of awards. That information would typically be found in the RFA or related program documents.
20) What makes a project a good fit based on the description?
Based on the description, a strong fit would be a practical, solutions-oriented project addressing pressing specialty crop needs at a national or multi-state/regional level, combining research with extension so results are actively translated into adoptable practices, tools, or decision support.
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| Distance Education Grants Program for Institutions of Higher Education in Insular Areas (DEG Apply for USDA NIFA RIGP 006732 Funding Number: USDA NIFA RIGP 006732 Agency: National Institute of Food and Agriculture Category: Agriculture Funding Amount: Case Dependent |
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