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2024 Dairy Digester Research and Development Program

CA Department of Food and Agriculture · 78174

Eligibility details

The project site must be located on a commercial California dairy operation. Individuals and/or entities receiving grant funds must be located in California with a physical business address. A dairy operation is defined as an entity that operates a dairy herd, produces milk or cream, and whose bulk milk or bulk cream is received or handled by any distributor, manufacturer, or any nonprofit cooperative association of dairy producers.

Matching funds & resources

Source matching-funds field: 50%. CDFA will fund up to 50% of the total project cost with a maximum grant award of $1.6 million per project. Therefore, a minimum of 50% matching funds is required (no more than 25% in-kind contributions).

Matching funds and leveraged resources are different requirements. Read the description and reviewed rules below before determining resource commitments.

About this opportunity

The Budget Act of 2022 (Senate Bill 154, Chapter 43) appropriated $48 million from the California State Budget to CDFA for methane emissions reductions from dairy and livestock operations, which was distributed through the DDRDP and the Alternative Manure Management Program (AMMP). CDFA awarded half of these appropriations for the 2023 grant solicitation; the expected remaining funds from the appropriations to be made available through DDRDP and AMMP in 2024. However, the Budget Act of 2024 (Assembly Bill 107, Chapter 22) transferred the remaining half of funds for livestock methane reduction ($24 million) to the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF), to be allocated as $17 million in FY 2425, with an expected $7 million in FY 25-26. Given the current budget circumstances, please be aware awards and final grant agreements for 2024 DDRDP applicants are contingent upon the funding being available. If the expected $7 million is appropriated in FY 25-26, it will be applied to the 2024 AMMP and DDRDP grant rounds as originally intended. Approximately $8 million is expected to be available for the 2024 DDRDP. The AMMP will make available approximately $17.4 million, which includes additional Greenhouse Gas Reduction funds from the Budget as amended by Assembly Bill 179 to support non-digester practices that reduce methane from dairy and livestock operations. • CDFA will fund a maximum grant award of $1.6 million per project for DDRDP projects situated in dairy operations that have not received an AMMP award in the past. • Applicants who have previously accepted and successfully implemented an AMMP project are eligible for up to $1.0 million per project through 2024 DDRDP. • A minimum of 50% matching funds is required, with a limit of 25% for in-kind contributions. Please refer to the Cost Share section for more details. • The maximum project term is thirty (30) months. • The grant agreement term for awarded projects is anticipated to begin June 1, 2025, and end November 30, 2027. Grant funds cannot be expended before the start of the grant agreement or after the completion of the grant term. • CDFA may offer an award different than the amount requested. • Applicants may also be eligible for an additional funding opportunity through the Dairy Plus Program. The project site must be located on a commercial California dairy operation. Individuals and/or entities receiving grant award funds must be located in California with a physical California business address. A dairy operation is defined as an entity that operates a dairy herd, which produces milk or cream commercially, and whose bulk milk or bulk cream is received or handled by any distributor, manufacturer, or any nonprofit cooperative association of dairy producers. Existing milk producers, including California Native American Tribes, and dairy digester developers are eligible for this program. For more information please refer to the 2024 Dairy Digester Research and Development Program Request for Grant Applications.

Funding geography: The project site must be located on a commercial California dairy operation. Individuals and/or entities receiving grant award funds must be located in California with a physical California business address.

Funding instrument: Grant. Issuing jurisdiction: California. This is not a geographic eligibility determination.