Texas State Programs: AgPro and the Specialty Crop Block Grant
Beyond the federal programs administered through Texas (RFSI, covered separately), the state has its own grant programs worth knowing about — though both come with eligibility catches worth understanding before you get your hopes up. AgPro (Agriculture Production Resource Opportunity Grant) — run by the Texas Agricultural Finance Authority, this funds equipment, infrastructure, and efficiency improvements for Texas agricultural producers, with awards from $5,000 to $500,000 (matching funds required). The catch: eligibility requires that 50% or more of your gross income come from commercial agricultural production — meaning actually growing crops, raising livestock, or similar. If your business model is buying produce from farmers and freeze-drying it, rather than growing it yourself, you likely won't qualify for AgPro as currently structured. Worth confirming directly with the program if your situation is mixed (for example, if you also grow some of what you process), but don't assume this one is a fit without checking. Specialty Crop Block Grant Program (SCBGP) — administered by the Texas Department of Agriculture, this funds projects that enhance the competitiveness of specialty crops (which includes dried fruit), with "Value Added/Industry Development" as an explicitly funded category. The catch here is different: grant funds must benefit more than one business — they explicitly cannot be used to solely benefit a single company's profit. This isn't a grant you'd apply for to fund your own freeze-drying operation directly; it's more relevant if you're part of (or helping organize) a broader industry effort — a producer association, a shared research or marketing project — that benefits multiple businesses at once. The honest takeaway: neither of these two state programs is a clean, direct fit for a typical solo freeze-drying business the way RFSI's Equipment-Only grant is. They're worth knowing about because your situation or plans might evolve to fit one of them — but don't go in expecting either to fund your own equipment purchase today.