2008 Agricultural Risk Management Education (RME)
Competitive Grants Program
The Agricultural Risk Management Education (RME) program helps U.S. farmers and ranchers enhance their profitability by providing the knowledge, skills, and tools they need to make informed risk management decisions.
RME offers competitive funding opportunities to institutions and organizations with the knowledge and experience to develop agricultural risk management curricula and deliver these to producers and their families. Risk management involves choosing among alternatives to reduce the financial effects of uncertainties in weather, yields, prices, government policies, global markets, and other factors that can cause wide swings in farm income. The five general risk categories associated with farm and ranch businesses are production, price or market, financial or income, legal, and human resource risks.
Applicants for risk management education grants should recognize the risk management education needs of all producers, including traditionally underserved producers, new, and beginning farmers, regardless of the size or scale of operations.
Four regional centers administer the funding opportunities annually with input from producers and other stakeholders knowledgeable and interested in agricultural risk management.
Application is a two–step process and includes a short, online Pre-Proposal and, if selected, a more detailed Full Proposal. Grant awards normally do not exceed $50,000 per project. The range of awards is generally from $5,000–$50,000; however, there is no absolute upper or lower limit on the funds provided to a project; awards reflect a mix of project sizes to meet a center’s investment goal of a balanced portfolio.
The return sought on the investment of grant awards is the improved ability of farm and ranch families to manage the risks associated with their businesses. Effective risk management education should help producers make a comparative risk assessment of alternative production or management practices.
Awards go projects that clearly identify risk management results and have a well-thought-out approach to achieve those results. Targets (explained in the following section) are the risk management results the applicant believes participants of the project will achieve. Targets are specific, measurable, and verifiable risk management results that participants will learn, achieve, and apply.
A full list of projects funded through this program is available through the Digital Center for Risk Management Education at the University of Minnesota. This Web site is the portal for grant application and reporting; it also contains archived project materials. Each project must post completed materials on the Web site.
Examples of projects previously funded through this program:
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Commodity Marketing Education
Assisting Women to Increase Farm Profitability While Decreasing Price Risk" Awarded to Purdue Extension
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Native American Farmers Markets
Awarded to New Mexico State University
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Risk Management Assessment And Education For Hispanic Farmers In Arkansa
Awarded to the University of Arkansas
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Risk Management Evening Educational Meetings - West Virginia
Awarded to the Eastern Panhandle Marketing Coop.
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Farm Transfer And Estate Planning For Minnesota Farm Families
Awarded to the University of Minnesota Extension Service
Contact Dr. J. Hipp, national program leader for Economic and Community Systems, for more information. Approximately $5 million are available annually.
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