The number of farms in Albemarle County has been steadily declining for decades, but the county’s economic development office has a few programs in place to try to help some businesses survive.
One of them is the Agribusiness Resiliency Grant Program which is intended for direct-market producers.
“The pandemic caused major disruptions to this system and the second round of the Agribusiness Resiliency Grant program supports agribusinesses who are experiencing longer-term impacts,” reads an announcement for the program. “These impacts include higher operating costs and challenges to accessing capital, which result in fewer resources to grow and reinvest.”
In this round, there is a total of $60,000 that will be distributed between three to eight businesses. Eligible businesses include those selling products to restaurants, wineries, cideries, caterers and other retailers. Applicants must be based in the county and must accept a site visit from the economic development office.
The funding can be used for new capital investments or for eligible expenses incurred since July 1, 2022. Up to a fifth of the award can be used for marketing. For more information, take a look at the county’s website.
To learn more about the declining number of farms, take a look at this story from mid-February from the Agricultural Census. In Albemarle, there were 866 farms in 2022, down from 913 in 2017.
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