DoD Fresh Program

Background
The USDA seeks to enter into a cooperative agreement with a Tribal organization, non-profit organization, or an American Indian Tribal College or any other accredited public or private academic institution of higher education with expertise working with Tribal communities to develop, design, and implement a fresh produce safety and handling training for program operators and staff of the Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) (hereafter referred to as FDPIR Produce Training Program). The training to be developed should model USDA’s Produce Safety University (PSU), a one-week experiential learning program that immerses child nutrition professionals in the fresh produce supply chain, arming graduates with skills to address real life scenarios and critically analyze and respond to food safety issues.

Grant Details
The Supplemental Nutrition and Safety Programs (SNAS) Food Safety and Nutrition Division (FSND) USDA Foods Nutrition Services and Access Branch (NSAB) seeks to award a competitive cooperative agreement to an external agency for a new FDPIR Produce Training Program for FDPIR program operators and staff. The proposed project is intended to be a collaborative effort between the awardee and USDA, with a 2-year period of performance. The awardee will develop a curriculum within the first 6 months of the award and implement and evaluate an in-person pilot training between months 6 – 10. In months 8 – 18 as determined by the pilot training and evaluation, an additional 3 to 4 in-person trainings will be implemented. The awardee will develop an evaluation report of the training in months 18 - 24 of the award.

Eligibility Requirements
Eligible applicants include any nonprofit or private organization, including community-based organizations, networks, or coalition of community-based organizations that can demonstrate experience in providing food safety and/or food handling education or other nutrition or food service-related services to Indian Tribal Organizations (ITOs), Federally recognized Tribes, and their members; An American Indian Tribal community college or an Alaska Native cooperative college that can demonstrate experience in providing food safety and/or food handling education or other nutrition or food service-related services to Indian Tribal Organizations (ITOs), Federally recognized Tribes, and their members; Any other accredited public or private academic institution of higher education that can demonstrate experience in providing food safety and/or food handling education or other nutrition or food service-related services to Indian Tribal Organizations (ITOs), Federally recognized Tribes, and their members in a region; Eligible tribal entities as defined in 25 U.S.C. § 5304 or a national tribal organization that can demonstrate experience in providing food safety and/or food handling education or other nutrition or food service-related services to Indian Tribal Organizations (ITOs), Federally recognized Tribes, and their members in a region.

Period of Performance
The period of performance for the grant is from September 25, 2023, to September 30, 2025.

Grant Value
The total amount of funding expected to award is $500,000. The anticipated number of awards is 1 with a maximum award amount (award ceiling) of $500,000.

Place of Performance
The grant requires travel to the location determined for all FDPIR Produce Training Program, including the pilot training, implemented during the execution of this cooperative agreement. Trainings for FDPIR program operators must be held in-person.