Loans & Grants for Beginning Farmers

Loans and grants for farmers are often crucial to starting a new farm business. This page — compiled with the help of our partner website, BeginningFarmers.org, and updated for 2025 — contains comprehensive information about finding financial help for starting your farm business. While many of these resources are available for farms of all sizes, others are specifically tailored to smaller-scale operations or ones that may pledge to use certain production strategies or terminology (like organic or cover cropping).

It is important to be aware that farm business planning is usually an essential component for obtaining funding, for either loans or grants for a farm enterprise. Please check out this Farm Business Planning Page to learn more about how to develop a business plan.

For an expansive look at various aspects of agricultural financing, please explore the articles on AGDAILY by Katie Ogden of Wildcatter Wealth Management. She covers retirement, the impact of the Federal Reserve, farm labor cost, farm transitions, and so much more.

How the Loans & Grants for Beginning Farmers page is organized

  1. We begin with a list of information resources about federal loan programs administered through the USDA’s Farm Service Agency (FSA).
  2. Next we provide information about other federal funding options.
  3. Then we list a number links to other public and private organizations which provide information about loans, grants and financial management both for farming and for research (on-farm and academic). Some are specific to beginning farmers, while others are not. And some are focused on particular geographical regions, while most are not.
  4. The next section lists beginning farmer loan and development programs administered by individual States.
  5. We then provide information about the Farm Credit Cooperative system and how it may assist beginning farmers.
  6. Finally, we have links to several private lenders, several of which offer loans specifically geared toward beginning farmers.
oklahoma-native-american-farmer
Native American farmer and retired teacher Jerri Parker grew up in agriculture and now operates a diversified farm in Cromwell, Oklahoma. (USDA photo by Preston Keres)

1) USDA Farm Service Agency loan programs

2) More on federal financing options

  • The National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition’s Guide to USDA Funding for Local and Regional Food Systems is a great resource that discusses grants and loans from the Community Outreach and Assistance Partnership Program; Specialty Crop Block Grants; Farmers Market Promotion Program; Federal State Marketing Improvement Program; Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (also see above); Community Food Projects Competitive Grant Program; Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE); Value Added Producer Grants; Rural Business Enterprise Grants; Rural Business Opportunity Grants; Rural Cooperative Development Grants; Community Facilities Grant Program; Small, Socially Disadvantaged Producer Grants; Business and Industry Guaranteed Loan Programs; Outreach and Assistance to Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers; as well as Regional Resources.
  • The Conservation Stewardship Program, administered through the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) provides important funding resources for farmers with areas that are not in agricultural production. And a list of all NRCS programs that provide funds for a wide variety of conservation projects, initiatives, and activities, can be found here.
  • The National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service (ATTRA) provides a list of federal, state, and local grant programs, regional funding sources, private lenders, with more opportunities listed here.
  • The USDA National Agricultural Library has resources on small farm funding, information about grants and loans for farmers, as well as a general funding resources page.
  • A list of USDA Rural Development Programs is available here.
  • GovernmentLoans.gov is a gateway to federal agricultural loan information.
  • Through the USDA’s Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program, farmers and ranchers can apply for grants that typically run between $500 and $15,000 for various projects. Different SARE grants are available in different regions. To learn more about available SARE grants, or to apply, visit the the SARE Grants website.
  • If you are a farmer or rural entrepreneur in the Midwest, you are able to use a free grants advising service of the Michael Fields Agricultural Institute. Their grants advisers help you decide whether a grant would be the best way to achieve your goals. If so, they will help you identify a grant program that best fits your goals and help you outline a plan of work for you to follow to meet the application deadline and all application requirements. If not, the adviser will suggest other funding resources for farmers. Examples might be federal, state or local loan programs, loan guarantees, as well as resource information and resource persons.
Image courtesy of American Farmland Trust

3) Other funding resources for farmers

  • The Brighter Future Fund, administered through American Farmland Trust, is dedicated to increasing the resources, training, and financial support needed to build lasting, sustainable farms. Since 2020, the Brighter Future Fund has granted nearly 5 million to over 2,000 farmers and ranchers to help them improve farm viability, access or protect farmland, and adopt regenerative practices. In 2024, over 50 percent of those awarded funding through this program were beginning farmers.
  • The Center For Rural Affairs is a great resource which offers links and advice for applying to beginning farmer funding programs Also be sure to check out their Farm Finances Page for lots of useful tips on planning your financing strategy.
  • The Chamber of Commerce has a page on Government Grants for Small Businesses, and it is always important to remember that a farm is a small business.
  • Learn about Aggie Bonds for Beginning Farmers by clicking on the “types of state ag loan programs” drop down menu at the National Council of State Agricultural Finance programs website.
    The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) offers research grants through its Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program.
  • RAFI USA has a publication called The Farmer’s Guide to Agricultural Credit. Though it is a bit older, they have updated it more recently. This guide was written to help farmers understand agricultural finance, and to help them be better prepared for the credit application process. It introduces some effective planning tools farmers can use to increase their opportunities in accessing capital. Also offered are appendices containing resources for further learning.
  • The Center for Farm Financial Management has a number of great tools, and lots of information to help farmers make sound financial decisions.
  • The Carrot Project “is a non-profit organization dedicated to creating financing solutions for small- and midsized farms, limited-resource farms, and those using ecologically sound practices. Our singular program model is designed to incubate and establish alternative financing programs in combination with business technical assistance.” Although their loan programs are focused specifically on farmers in and around New England, they do have a great deal of information that may be applicable and useful to beginning farmers everywhere.
  • The Equity Trust Fund is capitalized by socially motivated investors and donors. It uses its capital to make low-interest loans for community development, educational or agricultural projects: That promote the long-term interests of local communities as well as their individual members; That demonstrate the efficacy of land ownership models that balance the interests of individuals and communities; That promote social and economic justice; That promote environmentally conscious, economically sustainable land use; and that would be unlikely to receive financing from conventional sources.
financing the farm
Image by Africa Studio, Shutterstock

4) Links to state loan programs

In addition to the list below, please check out the National Council of State Agricultural Finance Programs and navigate to the “Types of State Ag Loan Programs” drop-down menu for more information about specific state beginning farmer financing programs and other funding resources for farmers including Beginning Farmer Aggie Bond Programs.

5) Farm Credit Cooperatives

Farm Credit Cooperatives are often a great option for funding resources for farmers including farm loans and other financial services for new and beginning farmers. For a nice overview article explaining what farm credit cooperatives are, and how they might assist you, check out the article written by Gary Matteson, VP for Young, Beginning Small Farmer Programs and Outreach at The Farm Credit Council.

Every Farm Credit institution has some kind of enhancement program for young, beginning, and small (YBS) farmers. Since each of those 90 institutions is independently operated, their YBS programs are not the same — they are tailored to local needs. Many Farm Credit institutions have what they offer on their websites, but many do not go into the specifics unless a local office is contacted.

For example, AgCountry Farm Credit Services “works to support the successful entry of young and beginning farmers into production agriculture through specialized credit underwriting, educational/informational programs and other activities. Meanwhile, The Farm Credit Council “serves young, beginning, and small farmers and ranchers.”

6) Commercial lenders

  • AgAmerica does lots of agricultural real estate loans with the intention of “building modern and scalable solutions that support you at every stage of your operation.”
  • Loans.com is a web portal to 750 commercial lenders.
  • The American Bankers Association has an Agriculture Banking page.
  • Janus Ag Finance has loan packages for purchasing agricultural land.
  • Investors Resource Alliance provides agricultural business plan funding and borrower or investor loans for the purchase of goods and services to produce agricultural products.
This resource guide to grants and loans for beginning farmers was originally published on BeginningFarmers.org and was most recently updated and revised for AGDAILY on Jan. 9, 2025.