Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig has announced the launch of the Choose Iowa Dairy Innovation Grant Program, a new initiative to reduce costs to dairy farmers and make Iowa dairy products more available to consumers. The grant program will allocate its $750,000 budget to provide small dairy farms with cost-share grants of up to $100,000 to invest in new, on-farm processing equipment or labor-saving technology. Producers must be able to provide a 1:1 match for the grant.

This program is one of several “Choose Iowa” grant programs, including the Value-Added Grant and Butchery Innovation and Revitalization Programs, that offer cost-share grants to financially support services that increase or expand Iowa’s agricultural offerings.

“Choose Iowa is our state’s signature brand for local food and beverages, and it is about connecting consumers to the great Iowa products that are grown, raised and made here in Iowa,” Naig said in a prepared statement. “We are excited to identify the most innovative and creative dairy projects through this program, which we know will create new markets for farmers, more choices for consumers, and additional economic activity in our rural communities.”

The grants could help dairies invest in things like pasteurization equipment, processing vats, packaging and labeling products, robots, health monitoring, automated feeding systems or cleaning assistance.

For additional details about the program, including financial matching requirements, eligibility criteria and the application process, visit the Choose Iowa website.