Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program

Providing grants to researchers, educators, and producers to improve the environmental and economic sustainability of farming and ranching

The Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program provides grants to advance farming systems that are profitable, environmentally sound, and good for communities. Specifically, the program awards grants to farms, universities, nonprofit organizations, and research/education institutions or agencies to improve the economic, environmental, and social sustainability of farming and ranching.

SARE also conducts educational and extension programs in an effort to increase knowledge about—and help farmers and ranchers adopt— sustainable farming practices.

SARE's four regional offices administer three primary grant programs, although some offer other opportunities for community innovation, and for graduate students and agricultural professionals conducting on-farm research.

Two of SARE's grant programs, Producer Grants and Research and Education Grants, may be used for on-farm research to explore diversification and marketing opportunities. SARE Professional Development Grants are used for a variety of professional development activities, ranging from conducting workshops to creating educational videos to hosting on-farm training sessions for extension workers and conservation professionals.

In addition, each region offers one or more programs that are unique to the region. Contact each region for more details.

Getting research results and helpful information to farmers in a timely, useful fashion is a high priority of the SARE program. SARE's national outreach arm, the Sustainable Agriculture Network (SAN), promotes effective communication about sustainable agriculture through a variety of printed and electronic information tools.

Project Examples
SARE has funded more than 2,500 projects to explore and apply economically profitable, environmentally sound, and socially supporting farming systems. Some examples are:

A grant of $4,935 was awarded for an organic tomato production and marketing manual. This producer project built upon a previous New Jersey Agriculture Department and NOFA New Jersey initiative that successfully developed uniform packaging systems and established a market for organic tomatoes.
A producer was awarded $1,304 to expand direct sales of sustainably produced beef in the Harrisburg, PA, area. Customers were also given the opportunity to visit the farm.
Montana researchers seeking alternatives to manage two crop-damaging insects—the wheat stem sawfly and the alfalfa weevil— have successfully introduced managed sheep grazing to knock back pests. With a SARE grant, researchers found that grazing sheep on crop residues after fall harvest disrupts the insects' lifestyles. Adding sheep brings multiple benefits to crop producers. By suppressing insects, sheep save farmers the costs of control measures such as burning, tillage, and insecticides. Sheep also crimp weed populations, which reduces costly tillage or herbicides during fallow management. Finally, sheep feed on low-cost crop residues and do their work without compacting the soil.
With a SARE professional development grant, a Nevada educator oversaw development of a wide-reaching curriculum for agricultural educators focusing on growing plants and animals on small properties in environmentally sensitive areas. The curriculum, dubbed "Living on the Land: Teaching Small Acreage Owners to Conserve Their Natural Resources" (co-developed with extension educators in California, Colorado, Utah, Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Montana), covers the basics of goal-setting, soils, water, vegetation, and animals. It also answers such questions as how to maintain healthy pastures and protect household drinking water.

Information Available
SARE, through SAN, publishes handbooks, free bulletins and CD ROMs. Information about SAN and SARE publications is available at www.sare.org or through any SARE office. Call (802) 656-0484 to order SAN publications, such as the following:

Building a Sustainable Business: A Guide to Developing a Business Plan for Farms and Rural Businesses. This 280-page manual brings the business planning process alive to help alternative and sustainable agriculture entrepreneurs transform farm-grown inspiration into profitable enterprises. The step-by-step strategies help you to develop a detailed, lender-ready business plan or map out ways to take advantage of new opportunities. Developed by the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture in cooperation with SAN. $14 plus S/H from MISA, (800) 909-MISA or misamail@umn.edu
Building Soils for Better Crops, 2nd edition. $19.95 This book for farmers, extension educators and soil science students unlocks the secret of maintaining a diverse ecosystem below ground to foster healthy crops above. The 240-page handbook contains detailed information about soil structure and the management practices that affect soils — as well as practical information such as how to interpret soil test results.
Managing Cover Crops Profitably, 2nd edition. $19. A practical handbook that helps remove the guesswork for farmers considering cover crops. Explores how and why cover crops work and provides all the information needed to build covers into any farming operation.
Steel in the Field: A farmer's guide to weed management tools. $18. This farmer-oriented book speaks to experienced or novice crop producers in any part of the country. More than 45 drawings accent technical descriptions on the role, design, and cost of tools.
The New Farmer's Market: Farm-Fresh Ideas for Producers, Managers and Communities. $24.95. In one complete volume, this must-have resource for direct market producers covers the latest tips and trends from leading-edge sellers, managers and market planners all over the country. Learn about the "hottest" products to grow and sell as well as how best to display and merchandise your products, set prices and run a friendly, profitable business. The second half of the book, written for market managers and city planners, offers ideas about how to use farmers markets as a springboard to foster community support for sustainable and locally grown foods.
How to Manage the Blue Orchard Bee as an Orchard Pollinator. $9.95. This 96-page manual offers a comprehensive look at how to rear blue orchard bees, which have become established as alternative orchard pollinators in North America, in part to address shortages in the number of honey bees. With a strong preference for fruit trees, blue orchard bees are highly efficient pollinators that are easy to manage and rarely sting.
The New American Farmer. Book ($10), CDROM ($5), or browse or download free at www.sare.org . This publication collects in-depth interviews with farmers and ranchers to describe sustainable farm operations around the country. In addition to describing successful farming practices, the features in The New American Farmer detail the effects of those practices on farm profitability, quality of life, rural communities and the environment.

Free information bulletins for producers and agricultural professionals are available at www.sare.org or call (301) 504-5236. Topics include:

‘Naturalize' Your Farming System: A Whole-Farm Approach to Managing Pests. This 20-page bulletin helps producers — and the educators who work with them — design farm-wide approaches to control pests.
Reap New Profits: Marketing Strategies for Farmers and Ranchers. This 20-page bulletin offers snapshots of the many alternatives to marketing commodities through conventional channels.
Put Your Ideas to the Test: How to Conduct Research on Your Farm or Ranch. This 12-page bulletin for farmers, ranchers, and the extension educators who work with them outlines how to conduct research at the farm level. The bulletin offers practical tips for both crop and livestock producers.
Profitable Poultry: Raising Birds on Pasture. This bulletin features farmer experiences plus the latest research in a new "how-to" guide to raising chickens and turkeys using pens, movable fencing, and pastures.
Profitable Pork: Alternative Strategies for Hog Producers. This 16-page bulletin showcases examples of alternate ways to raise pork profitably, for farmers who want to successfully produce pork on a small scale and can preserve their independence in the face of the consolidating hog industry.
Meeting the Diverse Needs of Limited-Resource Producers. This 16-page bulletin is a resource for agricultural educators, heads of community development and agricultural organizations, government agency staff, and others who want to better connect with and improve the lives of farmers and ranchers who remain hard to reach.
Diversifying Cropping Systems. This 20-page bulletin helps farmers design diverse rotations, choose new crops, and manage them successfully. The bulletin includes sidebars about five successful diverse farmers, sections on agroforestry and the environment, and a list of additional resources.
Opportunities in Agriculture: Transitioning to Organic Production. This 32-page bulletin lays out many promising conversion strategies, covering typical organic farming production practices, innovative marketing ideas and federal standards for certified organic crop production. The bulletin includes special sections on livestock production and profiles of four organic producers.

Application and Financial Information
SARE's four regional offices administer three grant programs. All grant programs have only one application period per year; each grant has its own application, deadline, and focus.

Each region solicits proposals and awards grants. Some regions also offer grants for graduate student research, on-farm research led by agriculture professionals, agriculture-related community development, or other special topics. Check with your region for details. The primary grant programs are:

SARE Research and Education Grants: Since 1988, four regional administrative councils have awarded competitive grants for sustainable agriculture research and education. Generally ranging from $30,000 to $200,000, they fund projects that usually involve scientists, producers, and others in an interdisciplinary approach. Many funded projects involve on-farm research trials with crops and/or livestock; other projects have studied quality of life, agricultural marketing, integrated farming systems, and soil and water conservation. Successful proposals typically include economic analysis and outreach components. The program also funds education and demonstration projects, including the development of farmer-to-farmer networks. Producers can team up with one or more technical experts (such as a university researcher) to apply for this grant. Typically about $2 million is available for each region.
SARE Producer Grants: Producers wanting to test an idea should consider this grant program for a research or education project. Many producer projects involve on-farm trials with crops or livestock, but some have focused on marketing or educational activities. Producers are expected to partner with an extension professional or other agricultural adviser and include a strategy for sharing their results with others. Usually, $150,000 to $200,000 is available for each region.
SARE Professional Development Grants: To spread the knowledge about sustainable concepts and practices gained from SARE projects, Congress began appropriating funds for professional development for Cooperative Extension Service (CES) staff and other agriculture professionals in 1994. To date, funds have been used for competitive grants and state-specific funding. SARE professional development grants are used for a variety of approaches, ranging from conducting workshops to creating educational videos to hosting on-farm training sessions for extension workers. Successful proposals have ranged from $10,000 to $100,000 and from single state to multi-state projects. Proposals that involve both extension personnel and producers are preferred, and partnerships of nonprofit organizations with extension and/or Natural Resource Conservation Service staff are welcome. Professional development activities are intended to be "train-the-trainer" programs, with a primary emphasis on CES staff, but they also provide opportunities for NRCS and other field agency staff. Typically, $300,000 to $400,000 is available for each region for grants.

Check SARE's regional offices for information on other grant opportunities. See information for SARE's regional contacts in this entry.

Eligibility, Uses, and Restrictions
Universities, nonprofit organizations, government agency staff, and agricultural producers are eligible for SARE grants.

The uses and restrictions vary from region to region and from year to year, depending on the specific call for proposals for a given year. Call the regional office for details on the call for proposals.

Contact
Proposal guidelines for each of the grants programs are available from the regional SARE offices or the national program office. Each region solicits proposals and awards grants independently; contact the regional office for applications and deadlines.

North Central Region
13A Activities Building , P.O. Box 830840
University of Nebraska Lincoln
Lincoln, NE 68583-0840
Phone: (402) 472-7081
E-mail: ncrsare@unl.edu

Northeast Region
University of Vermont
Hills Building
Burlington, VT 05405-0082
Phone: (802) 656-0471
E-mail: nesare@uvm.edu

Southern Region
University of Georgia
Ag Experiment Station
1109 Experiment Street
Griffin, GA 30223-1797
Phone: (770) 412-4787
E-mail: sare@griffin.uga.edu

Western Region
Utah State University
Ag Science Bldg., Rm. 305
4865 Old Main Hill Road
Logan, UT 84322-4865
Phone: (801) 797-2257
E-mail: wsare@mendel.usu.edu

National Program Office
Director, Sustainable Agriculture Programs
1400 Independence Ave. SW
USDA Mail Stop 2223
Washington, DC 20250-2223
Phone: (202) 720-6527; Fax: (202) 720-6071
E-mail: ehauhn@csrees.usda.gov

Internet
www.sare.org

Last Updated January 23, 2005