USDA gives $250k to help historically underserved Arizona farms and ranches

In an aerial view, the US-Mexico border stretches past a date farm on March 9, 2024, in Yuma. (Photo by John Moore/Getty Images)

By Robert Gundran

August 1, 2024

Arizona farms and ranches run by people who have historically been underserved are at the heart of new grants from the US Department of Agriculture.

Two Arizona organizations will receive a combined $250,000 to help historically disadvantaged agricultural businesses and customers apply for renewable energy programs.

The funding is part of a $163 million investment across the country, much of which comes from the Biden-Harris administration’s Inflation Reduction Act.

The nonprofit Vision Lakes Consulting Group, along with Garkane Energy Cooperative, a rural electric cooperative, were each awarded $125,000 to help businesses and agricultural customers in Arizona apply for the Rural Energy for America Program (REAP).

REAP provides guaranteed loan financing and grant funding to agricultural producers and rural small businesses purchasing renewable energy systems, or improving energy efficiency.

“The project will focus on farms and ranches in Arizona run by individuals which have historically been disadvantaged by past unethical practices of the USDA,” according to grant detailing.

Author

Robert Gundran

Robert Gundran grew up in the Southwest, spending equal time in the Valley and Southern California throughout his life. He graduated from Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism in 2018 and wrote for The Arizona Republic and The Orange County Register.

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CATEGORIES: INFRASTRUCTURE

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