BISMARCK – Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring has awarded 15 grants totaling over $2.5 million to promote the development, cultivation, production and sales of specialty crops in North Dakota.
“North Dakota is already a leading producer of several specialty crops, such as dry edible beans, dry peas, potatoes and lentils,” Goehring said. “As our farmers seek to diversify their production, these grants help provide important information through specialty crop research, education, and trade missions.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service (USDA-AMS) approved $2,503,834.75 for the 2025 grants. The grants are distributed based on a formula that takes into account specialty crop acreage and production value.
Specialty crops are defined in law as “fruits, vegetables, tree nuts, dried fruits, horticulture, and nursery crops, including floriculture.”
Organizations and agencies receiving grants are:
- North Dakota State University (NDSU) - $129,267 to develop eco-friendly nematode management approaches for control of pin nematodes in field pea
- NDSU - $109,810 to advance lentil production by optimizing management practices for sustainable dryland cropping system in North Dakota
- National Agricultural Genotyping Center (NAGC) – $183,308 to support North Dakota honey producers with a DNA diagnostic panel to identify local honey sources and evaluate authenticity of imported honey
- North Dakota Department of Agriculture (NDDA) - $199,381.30 to increase specialty crop access and education to schools and communities
- NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center - $111,959.24 to validate and advance integrated management strategies for Aphanomyces and Fusarium root rots in field peas
- NDSU – $144,571 to harness plant-growth promoting keystone inoculants for sustainable pulse production
- North Dakota Trade Office - $348,020.25 to grow global opportunities for North Dakota specialty crop producers and processors
- NDSU - $91,400 for twin-screw extrusion of whole pea flours for nutrient-rich fermented beverages
- NDDA - $67,107 to support export of potatoes to Canada, Mexico and other countries
- NDSU - $140,437 to study timing, impact, and control measures of potato black dot disease
- NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center - $88,702.80 to optimize fungicide droplet size for increased field pea yields under Ascochyta and powdery mildew pressure
- NDSU - $177,030 to explore the interactions among soil pH, nitrogen and common scab on potatoes
- NDDA - $231,328 to increase the promotion and sales of specialty crops through local partnerships at domestic trade shows and missions
- NDSU and Northern Crops Institute - $60,417 to study the influence of particle size on quality attributes of stone-milled pinto bean flour
- NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center - $195,021.46 to control soil-borne diseases in dry bean production with biofumigation of Brassica cover crops
NDDA received 49 applications, which were reviewed and scored by a select committee and approved by Goehring. Of the 49 applications, 15 were forwarded to the U.S. Department of Agriculture for final approval.
The application for the 2026 Specialty Crop Block Grant Program for the timeframe of October 1, 2026, to September 30, 2029, will open in early December 2025 and close in January 2026. Applications will then be reviewed, scored, ranked and provided to Agriculture Commissioner Goehring to determine which applications will be forwarded to the USDA for final approval in May 2026. Questions regarding the upcoming application process may be directed to 701-328-2191 or scbg@nd.gov.