EDA considers community/regionally based food systems to be foundational to many economic development ecosystems. A healthy food system can be a strong regional asset, in the same foundational vein as plentiful housing, sound transportation options, and good schools. EDA prioritizes funding projects that have tangible, real benefits to regional and local economies through measurable impacts like the amount of jobs created or retained or the amount of private funding leveraged through the EDA investment. The following tips can help EDDs secure EDA funding for their communities’ food systems projects:  

Disclaimer: All EDA awards are made through a competitive funding application process. These tips are helpful suggestions for EDDs to include in applications for EDA funding, but do not imply any certainty of receiving funding from EDA.  

1. Food and the CEDS 
   An EDA-funded food systems project begins and ends with the CEDS. Through the CEDS planning process, EDDs gain a better understanding of their regional food system’s economic assets and deficiencies and work with stakeholders to create a regional response.  Regions can use the Wealth Creation framework to help inform the Summary Background and initial data collection portions of the CEDS by undertaking an asset inventory process that will identify a region’s assets related to the eight capitals. Value chain mapping can be used to map out the system around particular market opportunities. 
   
   
2.  EDA’s Bread and Butter 
   EDA has typically supported infrastructure projects that support economic development, facilities upgrades that have regional economic impacts, creative seed funding or business financing through RLFs, and economic development planning. Consider how your regional food system can use EDA funding, within EDA’s usual scope of projects, to drive regional food system and value chain improvements.  
   
   
3.  Transformative Local Economic Impact 
   EDA prioritizes funding projects that create a transformative economic impact on local and regional economies. Prior to applying for EDA funds, consider how a project will address identified weaknesses and make a lasting impact on the community and region through transformative economic impact. Telling this story of transformation and real economic change in the application will set a food systems project apart from other competitive applications.  
   
   
4.  Hard Numbers 
   Number of jobs created or retained, and amount of private investment leveraged – Having a consistent, well-documented estimate for the economic impact of a food systems project will help EDA application reviewers better understand the economic value of a project. USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service and Colorado State University partnered to produce the Local Food Impact Calculator to help calculate the economic value of local food systems interventions. Through a series of questions about the scale and type of project, the Local Food Impact Calculator produces an economic impact value using an input-output model. These numbers can help regions communicate the value of food systems work and prove to EDA and other funding agencies that a regional food systems project can have transformative economic impact on a region’s economy.  
   
   Outside of the direct economic impact numbers requested by EDA, food systems work has extensive benefits that are important and can be included in other application narrative sections. Consider how to tell the project’s story through qualitative measures or narratives like improved economic opportunity for vulnerable populations, improved skills, new and/or improved physical food systems infrastructure, cultural impact in a targeted neighborhood, and/or better access to nutritional food for underserved communities. The Sprouts Minnesota Wealth Works report shows how food systems can evaluate their own effectiveness and identifies some helpful metrics to collect, include, and highlight when writing applications for grant funds.   
   
   
5. Community Buy-In 
   EDDs should aim to source stakeholder input and a target community’s input at every level of the project. Demonstrating that a community is actively championing and involved in a project will create a stronger project that is more likely to receive EDA funding. EDA wants to fund projects that are responsive to community-identified needs, actively engaging local community leaders and residents, and that will come to fruition in partnership with community champions.  

EDA has consistently funded food systems projects that have direct economic impacts in regions. The following table shows examples of EDA funded food systems projects, highlighting the role EDA has played in regional food systems development.