FARM Frequently Asked Questions

The FARM (Forestry, Agriculture, & Rural Markets) program is designed to provide cost share dollars and financial incentives for projects that strengthen and expand Tennessee agricultural and forestry supply chains in response to the weaknesses revealed by the COVID-19 pandemic. This program is funded by the State of Tennessee’s allocation of American Rescue Plan funding through the State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund. The Fourth Round of Funding will be an express round, where all projects can only include equipment and the installation of said equipment.

The FARM cost share program will have four rounds of applications and awards. For the fourth round, the application portal will be open from December 10th, 2025 – December 31, 2025 at 5:00pm CST. Awards will be announced in January 2026, and funding recipients will have until August 31st, 2026 to complete their projects and submit the appropriate documentation and information to receive their allocation in the form of a reimbursement.

Agricultural and forestry businesses who have current operations in Tennessee and are executing their proposed project within Tennessee will be eligible for consideration. They must submit an application, and the final decision of funding recipients will be determined after all applications have been reviewed and scored.

No, colleges and universities will not be eligible for this program.

Yes, local governments and non-profits are eligible to apply for the FARM program.

The FARM cost share program will cover 50% of project costs.

No, in-kind matching will not be allowable.

Funding amounts will be determined following the evaluation of your application. The maximum amount of funding will be $250,000, and the minimum amount of funding will be $10,000.

Businesses that are eligible for both programs may receive funding in both, but the maximum funding amount that can be received across both programs is $1 million.

Funds will be made available on a reimbursement basis only when the project is complete and operational.

To receive reimbursement, you will be required to complete a request form including some details about your project expenses, and all necessary supporting documentation for each expense.

Each funding recipient may only submit one reimbursement request. Reimbursement requests must be submitted at the completion of the project.

Projects must be complete by August 31st, 2026.

Yes.

No, this is not required. 

FARM funding can be used only for equipment and installation services.

No, these expenses are not eligible for reimbursement with FARM funding.

No, these expenses are not eligible for reimbursement with FARM funding.

No, feasibility studies are not eligible expenses for the FARM program.

Yes, this is allowable. 

No, ARPA Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund dollars generally may not be used for a non-federal match with other federal funding sources. Exceptions listed in the federal guidance do not apply to this program.

Yes.

Yes, administrative costs are eligible up to 5% of your award amount.

The application form will be available through an application portal that will go live on December 10th, 2025 at 7:00 AM CST.

For round #4 of applications, the portal will be open for submissions from December 10th, 2025 – December 31, 2025 at 5:00pm CST.

No, applications must be submitted on time to be considered.

Applicants will be required to provide general information about their business, narrative information stating how the pandemic affected your business, and a detailed project plan for your proposed project.

Applications will be scored based on the following criteria:

1. County of origin
2. Percentage increase of operation 
3. Impact on TN’s food & fiber supply chain
4. Project readiness
5. Collaboration with industry/community partners
   
   

No, applications will be evaluated at the close of the application period without considering the time and date within the application window that the application was submitted. The timing of the application will not affect application score.

There is a link to the proper W-9 on the last tab of the application.

Awards will be announced in January 2026 for the fourth and final round of awards.

Yes, but an entity is limited to $1,000,000 in total FARM-TUFF funds and it must be a new and unrelated project to your original awarded project.

Application questions should be sent to business.development@tn.gov or FTSupport@horne.com. Also, please review the FARM Round 4 User Guide when completing your application.

Businesses who receive funding through the FARM cost share program are considered subrecipients of American Rescue Plan funding. As subrecipients, grantees must comply with the requirements of the Uniform Guidance for Federal Awards (2 C.F.R. 200). These requirements include (but are not limited to):

1. Procurement Requirements
2. Asset Management and Disposition Requirements
   
3. Audit Requirements
4. Subrecipient Risk Assessment

Uniform Guidance may be found here: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200.

The Uniform Guidance procurement requirements at 2 CFR 200.317 – 327 apply to all purchases made under this program. These requirements set forth specific standards for full and open competition, with the goal of promoting competition and fairness in the procurement process. Subrecipients must fully comply with these requirements, including maintaining written procurement and conflict of interest policies in place, adhering to the most restrictive of federal, state, and local procurement requirements, and conducting all procurement transactions in a manner that provides for full and open competition, among other requirements.

When reimbursement requests are submitted, subrecipients must provide all procurement documentation for TDA to review for compliance.  

Sub-recipients are required to follow a procurement process that is as stringent if not more stringent than the federal procurement requirements contained in the Uniform Guidance. In some cases, that may require purchases of eligible goods and services to be procured through a competitive bidding process, depending on the circumstances.

Entities that do not comply with the federal procurement requirements may be subject to penalties, including disallowed costs and suspension or termination of their grants.  

Micro-purchases under $10,000 do not require formal bids. Between $10,000 and $350,000 will require 3 quotes and documentation about why that vendor was selected. For purchases greater than $350,000, a formal procurement process is required, using either sealed bids or proposals. Please see § 2 CFR 200.320 for more information about methods of procurement.

Yes. The federal procurement standards require entities to take the following “affirmative steps” when conducting a procurement to assure that minority businesses, women’s business enterprises, and labor surplus area firms are used when possible.

The steps must include:

1. Placing qualified small and minority businesses and women's business enterprises on solicitation lists
2. Assuring that small and minority businesses, and women's business enterprises are solicited whenever they are potential sources
3. Dividing total requirements, when economically feasible, into smaller tasks or quantities to permit maximum participation by small and minority businesses, and women's business enterprises
4. Establishing delivery schedules, where the requirement permits, which encourage participation by small and minority businesses, and women's business enterprises
5. Using the services and assistance, as appropriate, of such organizations as the Small Business Administration and the Minority Business Development Agency of the Department of Commerce; and
6. Requiring the prime contractor, if subcontracts are to be let, to take the affirmative steps listed in items 1 through 5.

§ 2 CFR 200.501 Audit requirements state that a non-Federal entity that expends $1,000,000 or more during the non-Federal entity's fiscal year in Federal awards must have a single or program-specific audit conducted for that year.

Recipients of FARM cost share funding will be required to have a Unique Identifying Number (UEI) from SAM.gov. However, they are not required to go through the business registration process with SAM.gov. Step by step instructions for getting a UEI are located at the following link: https://youtu.be/U7sjf6Ei0Mg?si=NHiyXgOCftVfLsyx

The term “equipment” means any article of nonexpendable, tangible, personal property having a useful life of more than one year and an acquisition cost which equals or exceeds five thousand dollars ($10,000.00).

Subrecipients must obtain prior approval from the State before purchasing any equipment. In addition, federal standards for equipment at 2 CFR 200.313 apply, including title, use, asset management, and disposition requirements.

All reimbursed costs must be incurred after your date of award/date of fully executed contract. Please also keep in mind that the equipment purchased must have been acquired in accordance with relevant federal/local/state procurement standards.