Specialty Crop Research Initiative Request for Pre-Applications | USDA NIFA SCRI 006394

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NIFA SCRI 006394

The Specialty Crop Research Initiative (SCRI) Request for Pre-Applications is a mandatory USDA funding opportunity administered by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under Funding Opportunity Number USDA NIFA SCRI 006394 (CFDA 10.309). Its core aim is to strengthen and sustain the specialty crop sector by funding projects that combine research and extension activities to tackle pressing, real-world challenges affecting specialty crops. The program is designed to support work that matters at scale, emphasizing issues of national, regional, and multi-state importance rather than narrowly local concerns. It explicitly includes and supports both conventional and organic production systems, reflecting a broad view of specialty crop agriculture and the range of production models used across the industry.

The focus of SCRI is on addressing the "critical needs" of the specialty crop industry, which typically means projects that can measurably improve productivity, profitability, resilience, and long-term sustainability across the specialty crop supply chain. While the notice does not list specific topic areas in the provided text, the framing signals that competitive projects should target key challenges that affect multiple stakeholders and regions, and that they should produce outcomes that can be adopted by growers, processors, distributors, and other industry partners. A notable feature is the emphasis on integrated research and extension, meaning proposals are expected not only to generate new knowledge or technologies but also to include plans for outreach, education, or other extension work that moves results into practice.

This announcement is specifically a request for pre-applications, indicating an initial screening step before full proposals are invited or submitted. Pre-applications generally require applicants to concisely describe the project concept, goals, approach, partnership structure, and anticipated impacts so the agency can gauge fit with program priorities. The closing date for pre-applications listed in the source data is December 8, 2017, and the opportunity record shows a creation date of September 25, 2017.

Eligibility is broad and includes a wide range of entities that are capable of carrying out research and extension at meaningful scale. Pre-applications may be submitted by federal agencies and national laboratories, colleges and universities, research institutions and organizations, private organizations or corporations, State Agricultural Experiment Stations, and Cooperative Extension Services. Individuals are also eligible, as are groups or collaborations consisting of two or more of the eligible entity types. This structure supports the kind of multi-institution and cross-sector teams often needed for complex specialty crop challenges, such as those involving plant health, production practices, postharvest handling, market and supply chain constraints, and other system-wide issues.

In terms of award details, the source data does not provide an award ceiling or expected number of awards (those fields are present but not populated). The funding instrument type is listed as a grant, and the activity category is agriculture. Overall, the opportunity is geared toward well-justified, high-impact projects that can demonstrate broad relevance to specialty crops and show a clear pathway from research to adoption through strong extension and stakeholder engagement.

• The National Institute of Food and Agriculture in the agriculture sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Specialty Crop Research Initiative Request for 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 2017-09-25.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-12-08. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for USDA NIFA SCRI 006394

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