{"id":2736,"date":"2026-03-23T09:07:16","date_gmt":"2026-03-23T16:07:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/?p=2736"},"modified":"2026-03-23T09:24:39","modified_gmt":"2026-03-23T16:24:39","slug":"cdfa-accepting-pre-proposals-for-the-2026-fertilizer-research-and-education-program-grant-cycle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/cdfa-accepting-pre-proposals-for-the-2026-fertilizer-research-and-education-program-grant-cycle\/","title":{"rendered":"CDFA Accepting Pre-Proposals for the 2026 Fertilizer Research and Education Program Grant Cycle"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><tbody><tr><td class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">The California Department of Food and Agriculture\u2019s Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) is now accepting pre-proposals for the 2026 grant cycle. FREP\u2019s competitive grant program funds proposals that advance efficient nutrient and irrigation management practices that minimize environmental impacts through research, demonstration, education and training.\u00a0\u00a0This year\u2019s priorities include: outreach, education, and demonstration projects focused on increasing the adoption of efficient crop nutrient and irrigation management practices and technologies; evaluating challenges and barriers to adoption of management practices; the role of organic input materials in soil nutrient management; demonstrating and\/or validating management practices that optimize nutrient and\/or irrigation water use; filling knowledge gaps for nutrient and irrigation management in specific crops; understanding nutrient movement from the root zone; and mitigation strategies to reduce nutrient losses.\u00a0California\u2019s agricultural communities are diverse and many have historically lacked access to resources and information needed to help them successfully run their businesses. CDFA encourages projects that include demonstrable benefits for socially disadvantaged farmers and farm workers, including groups whose members have been subjected to racial, ethnic, or gender discrimination.\u00a0<br><br>Applicants are invited to submit pre-proposals to FREP by April 27, 2026. Pre-proposals should be aligned with at least one of the identified funding priorities and use the provided pre-proposal template. Further information on the 2026 FREP RFP, including timelines, funding priorities, and templates are available on the Grant Program web page at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.cdfa.ca.gov\/is\/ffldrs\/frep\/CompetitiveGrantProgram.html?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=govdelivery\">www.cdfa.ca.gov\/is\/ffldrs\/frep\/CompetitiveGrantProgram.html<\/a>.\u00a0<br><br>All pre-proposals will be reviewed by the Fertilizer Inspection Advisory Board\u2019s Technical Advisory Subcommittee (TASC). Applicants whose pre-proposals are selected by TASC will be invited to develop full proposals.\u00a0Since 1990, FREP has funded more than 280 projects, investing over $32 million in research, outreach, and education projects focusing on irrigation and nutrient management practices in California. A database of completed and ongoing research is available on the\u00a0FREP Research web page at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.cdfa.ca.gov\/go\/FREPresearch?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=govdelivery\">www.cdfa.ca.gov\/go\/FREPresearch<\/a>.<br><br>For more information, please send email inquiries to\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:FREP@cdfa.ca.gov\">FREP@cdfa.ca.gov<\/a>.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The California Department of Food and Agriculture\u2019s Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) is now accepting pre-proposals for the 2026 grant cycle. FREP\u2019s competitive grant program funds proposals that advance efficient nutrient and irrigation management practices that minimize environmental impacts through research, demonstration, education and training.\u00a0\u00a0This year\u2019s priorities include: outreach, education, and demonstration projects focused on increasing the adoption of &hellip;<\/p>\n<div class=\"m-y-md text-right\"><a href=\"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/cdfa-accepting-pre-proposals-for-the-2026-fertilizer-research-and-education-program-grant-cycle\/\" class=\"btn btn-primary\" aria-label=\"Continue reading the blog post...\">Read More<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1722,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_EventAllDay":false,"_EventTimezone":"","_EventStartDate":"","_EventEndDate":"","_EventStartDateUTC":"","_EventEndDateUTC":"","_EventShowMap":false,"_EventShowMapLink":false,"_EventURL":"","_EventCost":"","_EventCostDescription":"","_EventCurrencySymbol":"","_EventCurrencyCode":"","_EventCurrencyPosition":"","_EventDateTimeSeparator":"","_EventTimeRangeSeparator":"","_EventOrganizerID":[],"_EventVenueID":[],"_OrganizerEmail":"","_OrganizerPhone":"","_OrganizerWebsite":"","_VenueAddress":"","_VenueCity":"","_VenueCountry":"","_VenueProvince":"","_VenueState":"","_VenueZip":"","_VenuePhone":"","_VenueURL":"","_VenueStateProvince":"","_VenueLat":"","_VenueLng":"","_VenueShowMap":false,"_VenueShowMapLink":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[39,446],"tags":[272],"class_list":["post-2736","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-frep-grant-program","category-news","tag-fertilizer-research-funding"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p9r16A-I8","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":1449,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/accepting-proposals-2020-frep-grants\/","url_meta":{"origin":2736,"position":0},"title":"Now Accepting Proposals for 2020 Fertilizer Research and Education Program Grants","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"December 5, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"The California Department of Food and Agriculture\u2019s (CDFA) Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) is now accepting proposals for the 2020 grant cycle. FREP\u2019s competitive grant program funds research and education to advance the efficient use of fertilizer materials and reduce environmental impacts associated with them. Two Requests for Proposals\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;FREP Grant Program&quot;","block_context":{"text":"FREP Grant Program","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/frep-grant-program\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":195,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/now-accepting-concept-proposals-for-2017-fertilizer-research-and-education-grants\/","url_meta":{"origin":2736,"position":1},"title":"Now Accepting Concept Proposals for 2017 Fertilizer Research and Education Grants","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"December 16, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"The California Department of Food and Agriculture\u2019s Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) is currently accepting concept proposals for the 2017 grant cycle. FREP\u2019s competitive grant program funds research that advances the agronomic and environmental performance of fertilizing materials. The 2017 Request for Proposals (RFP) includes several initiatives put forth\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;FREP Grant Program&quot;","block_context":{"text":"FREP Grant Program","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/frep-grant-program\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":72,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/cdfa-accepting-concept-proposals-for-2016-fertilizer-research-and-education-grants\/","url_meta":{"origin":2736,"position":2},"title":"CDFA Accepting Concept Proposals for 2016 Fertilizer Research and Education Grants","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"December 29, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"The California Department of Food and Agriculture\u2019s Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) is currently accepting concept proposals for the 2016 grant cycle. FREP\u2019s competitive grant program funds research that advances the agronomic and environmental performance of fertilizing materials. The 2016 Request for Proposals (RFP) includes several initiatives put forth\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;FREP Grant Program&quot;","block_context":{"text":"FREP Grant Program","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/frep-grant-program\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":129,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/availability-of-fertilizer-research-and-education-grant-funding\/","url_meta":{"origin":2736,"position":3},"title":"Availability of Fertilizer Research and Education Grant Funding","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"August 16, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"Grant proposals are due on September 1, 2016. FREP is currently accepting proposals for a 2016 special grant for fertilizer research and education. This competitive grant program funds research that advances the environmentally safe and agronomically sound use of fertilizing materials. Funding availability is limited to proposals that address the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;FREP Grant Program&quot;","block_context":{"text":"FREP Grant Program","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/frep-grant-program\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":2755,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/cdfa-announces-vacancies-on-fertilizer-inspection-advisory-board-technical-advisory-subcommittee\/","url_meta":{"origin":2736,"position":4},"title":"CDFA Announces Vacancies on Fertilizer Inspection Advisory Board Technical Advisory Subcommittee","author":"Jennifer Harmon","date":"April 9, 2026","format":false,"excerpt":"The California Department of Food and Agriculture is now accepting applications to fill four vacancies on the Fertilizer Inspection Advisory Board\u2019s Technical Advisory Subcommittee (TASC). TASC serves as an expert scientific panel on matters concerning efficient use of fertilizing materials and irrigation water. TASC members advise on Fertilizer Research and\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Technical Advisory Subcommittee&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Technical Advisory Subcommittee","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/technical-advisory-subcommittee\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":334,"url":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/grants-to-begin-funding-january-2018\/","url_meta":{"origin":2736,"position":5},"title":"Grants to Begin Funding January 2018","author":"Brooke Elliot","date":"January 2, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"The Fertilizer Research and Education Program (FREP) of the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) is pleased to announce the award of almost $800,000 in grant funds to agricultural organizations and universities this year. These grants will fund four projects that will improve the efficiency and reduce the environmental\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;FREP Grant Program&quot;","block_context":{"text":"FREP Grant Program","link":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/category\/frep-grant-program\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2736","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1722"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2736"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2736\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2741,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2736\/revisions\/2741"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2736"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2736"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.cdfa.ca.gov\/FREP\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2736"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}