Methyl Bromide Transition Program | USDA NIFA ICGP 006245

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NIFA ICGP 006245

The Methyl Bromide Transition Program is a competitive grant opportunity from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) designed to help U.S. agriculture move away from reliance on methyl bromide, a pesticide that was long considered essential for controlling difficult soilborne and postharvest pests but is being phased out. The program exists to cover the practical, near-term needs and real-world costs that growers and industries face as they shift to alternative pest and disease control approaches. Its core purpose is not just to test substitute treatments in isolation, but to support integrated, commercial-scale research paired with extension efforts so that workable alternatives can actually be adopted in the field and in postharvest settings.

Projects funded under this program are expected to explore a broad set of replacement options, including new methodologies, technologies, systems, and management strategies that can control economically important pests where methyl bromide was previously the only consistently effective tool. This emphasis on commercial-scale work signals that proposals should go beyond small plot or proof-of-concept studies and instead demonstrate performance, feasibility, and implementation considerations in realistic production or handling environments. Alongside the research, applicants are expected to include extension or outreach components that help translate findings into grower and industry use, speeding up adoption of successful alternatives.

A key requirement is that each research proposal must focus on commodities facing critical pest management challenges tied to the methyl bromide phase-out, and it must include a targeted economic analysis. That economic component should address what it actually costs to implement the transition at commercial scale, such as changes in input costs, equipment or infrastructure needs, labor, yield or quality impacts, risk tradeoffs, and overall cost-effectiveness compared with previous methyl bromide-based systems. In other words, the program is looking for solutions that are not only technically effective but also economically realistic for producers and supply chain stakeholders.

Eligibility to apply is limited to colleges and universities as defined under Section 1404 of NARETPA (7 U.S.C. 3103). The opportunity notes updates to eligibility that broaden which institutions qualify, including Hispanic-serving Agricultural Colleges and Universities (HSACUs) and research foundations maintained by eligible colleges or universities, as recognized through amendments in the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008. It also explicitly includes 1994 Land-Grant Institutions as eligible applicants due to amendments to AREERA made through the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002. While only eligible institutions can submit applications directly, award recipients are allowed to subcontract with otherwise ineligible organizations if those partners are necessary to carry out the project. The notice also stresses that failing to meet eligibility requirements by the application deadline can lead to the proposal being excluded or otherwise make an award impossible even if the proposal is reviewed.

Administratively, this is a discretionary grant program (CFDA 10.303) offered under the funding opportunity titled "Methyl Bromide Transition Program" with opportunity number USDA NIFA ICGP 006245. The original closing date listed for this specific notice was April 25, 2017, and the award ceiling shown is $500,000. The overall framing makes clear that NIFA is seeking applied, integrated projects that can deliver practical pest management replacements for methyl bromide and support real adoption through extension and solid economic justification.

• The National Institute of Food and Agriculture in the agriculture sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Methyl Bromide Transition Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.303.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2017-02-28.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2017-04-25. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $500,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for USDA NIFA ICGP 006245

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