Alabama State Association of Cooperative provides outreach and assistance to farmers in retaining and expanding their landholdings, accessing and fully utilizing USDA programs and supporting cooperative development in the state..
Federation of Southern Cooperatives is a catalyst for the development of self-supporting communities through cooperative economic development, land retention, and advocacy.
Mississippi Association of Cooperatives serves farming families and communities by providing technical assistance and advocating for the needs of cooperatives, including networking, sustainable production, marketing, and community food security.
National Black Food and Justice Alliance is a coalition of Black-led organizations aimed at developing Black leadership, supporting Black communities, organizing for Black self-determination, and building institutions for Black food sovereignty & liberation.
Southeastern African American Farmers Organic Network is a network of Black farmers committed to advancing ecologically sustainable practices in the Southeastern U.S. and U.S. Virgin Islands, and cultivating liberatory approaches to land stewardship and agriculture by promoting the links between Black farming, Black history, and Black culture.
Southern Rural Black Women’s Initiative for Social and Economic Justice, is a collective of women leaders across Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia dedicated to lifting up Black women and families in rural, impoverished areas.
Mississippi Center for Cultural Production, supports community development from the ground up through cultural production focused on self-determination and agency designed by and for us in the belief that history, culture, and food affirm our individual and collective humanity.
Regional Food Crisis Response Feasibility Study –Conducting feasibility assessments for The Federation of Southern Cooperatives (FSC)’s Regional Marketing System (SOCO) and emerging regional cooperative food systems initiatives, to ensure new and existing cooperative enterprises are built on a solid foundation for sustainable growth.
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $60,000
Gainesville Health & Wellness Center: Rural Youth Alliance – Investing in 10–15 rural Black youth in Sumter County, Alabama through a program that blends ancestral knowledge with modern agricultural tools, cooperative economics, and STEM fields across five focus areas including: life and survival skills, community resilience, agri-business, land stewardship, and ag-technology.
Panola Land Buyers Association $75,000
Wilcox County Community Garden Project – Supporting a thriving community garden in Wilcox County, Alabama – that harvested 9,500 pounds of produce in 2025 – through the installation of a high tunnel, a new bee colony and herb garden, expanded garden crew employment, and continued produce distribution at little to no cost for county residents.
SRBWI / Bama Kids, Inc. $100,000
Gainesville Telehealth Implementation – Advancing the Gainesville Health & Wellness Center Telehealth Kiosk project to its next phase while supporting FSC’s backbone role in the region and funding feasibility studies for cooperative development initiatives — while leveraging this funding to attract additional resources and partnerships across Alabama, Mississippi, and beyond.
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $100,000
Fresh Greens Market – Supporting farming infrastructure, wages for young and elder farmers, and startup capacity for a permanent FreshGreens Market storefront on reclaimed ancestral land in Montgomery’s Westside — building a community-rooted food system that keeps economic value circulating locally.
Youth-N-Action $50,000
FSC Feasibility Study — Assessing the viability of revitalizing Southern Alternative, a dormant pecan processing cooperative in Leslie, Georgia, and the Southeastern Heritage Cotton and Grain Cooperative in Louisiana — providing the research needed to guide investment, infrastructure, and long-term cooperative growth across the rural South.
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $69,443
SRBWIA — Supporting the MS Delta Southern Rural Black Women in Agriculture Cooperative – a network of 21 women farmers across 7 Mississippi counties, with collective sales exceeding $40,550 in 2025 – in trainings for GAP/GHP certification, value-added production, and market development.
SRBWI – $100,000
Main Street Cultural Center – Completing final renovations and supporting early operations of the Main Street Cultural Center in downtown Utica, Mississippi — a multipurpose space featuring a commercial kitchen, event and exhibition areas, and flexible programming rooms; serving as an anchor for food sovereignty, cultural production, and Main Street revitalization, currently housing a farmer’s market and the Utica Food Club.
Mississippi Center for Cultural Production (AKA Sipp Culture) $150,000
Fountain Heights Farms Coop: Heart of the Farm – Completing final construction and equipment installation for the Heart of the Farm project — a neighborhood market and community kitchen in Birmingham — to anchor the “We All Eat CSA”, support Black and BIPOC farmers, and create affordable kitchen access and workforce development.
OurSpace World, Inc. $100,000
Mystic Roots Medicinal Herb Farm & Wellness Space – Expanding cultivated acreage for heirloom crops, establishing a larger medicinal herb operation, and developing a Herbal Medicine Wellness Trail to deepen food sovereignty and restore ancestral Gullah Geechee agricultural practices on Sapelo Island, Georgia.
Mystic Roots Foundation, Inc. $25,000
Transplant & Seed Production – Launching a Cooperative Nursery Project with four Alabama producer cooperatives, through the Alabama State Association of Cooperatives (ASAC), to build shared greenhouse infrastructure, introduce seedling and transplant production, and extend growing seasons through high tunnel rotations — reducing input costs and strengthening cooperative farm viability.
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $29,000
Mobile Processing Unit – Building capacity in preventative herd health management for livestock-producing cooperatives across Alabama, with hands-on training and portable handling, scale, ultrasound, and processing equipment for goat, sheep, pig, poultry, and cattle producers; provided by ASAC.
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $75,000
Farm Food Safety & GAP Support – Providing GAP workshops, training, and a 75% cost-share on audits to help small and minority farmers in Mississippi achieve food safety certification and expand access to commercial, wholesale, and retail markets; with support from the Mississippi Association of Cooperatives (MAC).
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $20,000
The Crossroad Commercial Kitchen and Regional Food Hub – Sustaining the Crossroads Commercial Kitchen/Food Hub in Clarksdale and its Healthy Harvest Network — a 22-church-based farmers market system — with market infrastructure, recruiting small food businesses, expanding local grower partnerships, and developing youth workforce opportunities; after losing a major USDA regional food business grant following the federal administration change.
SRBWI $150,000
Youth Labor Force Development – ASAC is investing in 3–5 young adults with hands-on training and apprenticeships within Alabama cooperative farming operations, building sustainable career pathways in agriculture and cooperative business development.
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $75,000
Cooperative Re-Granting – MAC is administering a re-granting program to provide direct financial assistance to cooperative members for equipment and production inputs — including pea shellers and seeds — to improve farm income and productivity across Mississippi.
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $100,000
Nature’s Garden for Victory and Peace, Inc. – Establishing a Community Land Trust in Tuskegee, Alabama’s Black Belt through legal document development, civil engineering assessments, sustainable garden maintenance, and community deliberation grounded in Nguzo Saba principles and ancestral land stewardship traditions.
Nature’s Garden for Victory and Peace, Inc. $25,000
Mississippi Association of Cooperatives Small Farmer Conference – Covering registration and accommodations for 100 farmers to attend MAC’s annual Small Farmers Conference and Ag Symposium, removing financial barriers to critical education, program information, and networking opportunities.
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $49,000
Southern Agrarian Youth Network – Supporting SAAFON’s Southern Agrarian Youth Network through a dedicated staff coordinator, the 4th annual SAYN gathering, and two land-based training events — connecting Black agrarian elders and youth across the South in cultural and agricultural practice.
SAAFON $80,000
SAAFON Membership Assembly – Hosting SAAFON’s inaugural in-person Membership Assembly at the historic Penn Center, and a partners convening to co-develop the Southern Black Agrarian Organizing Institute — a shared framework for regional movement building and long-term coordination, to codify organizing methodologies, and strengthen the infrastructure of the Southern Black agrarian movement.
SAAFON $20,000
Boggs Rural Life Center – Supporting a year of sustained executive leadership at this nearly 120-year-old institution in Burke County, Georgia to continue its revitalization — rebuilding financial systems, restoring agricultural activities, and reclaiming its legacy as a hub for Black land ownership and rural development.
Boggs Rural Life Center, Inc. $75,000
Reality Farm Tour for New & Beginning Farmers – MAC is launching a multi-state tour through Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama with stops at trade schools, universities, and agricultural entities to expose youth and beginning farmers to diverse farming career pathways, cooperative models, and agricultural innovation.
Federation of Southern Cooperatives/LAF $60,000
The fund now welcomes funding from a broad array of donors to continue to support rural Black community self determination throughout the Black Belt region.