Grants to grow your food business (Up to $20,000)

Who can apply?

This application is intended for:

• Applicants who have not received funds from World Central Kitchen (WCK)
• Applicants who are applying to the Food Producer Network for the first time
• Applicants who applied in a past application round but their application was not approved

Who should apply: 

• Agriculture: small to medium sized agricultural projects (farms, hydroponics, beekeeping, animal husbandry, aquaculture, etc)
• Fishery: fishers, fishmongers, fish shops, fishing villages, etc
• Food businesses: food producers, manufacturers, distributors, or suppliers.

Who should not apply: 

• Large scale agricultural projects (50 acres or more in production)
• Emerging projects or businesses
• Projects or businesses in the ideation or conceptual stage
• Projects or businesses without production or sales history
• Projects focused on export

We have a strong preference for applicants who:

• Employ sustainable, regenerative or ecological practices 
• Are seriously interested in transitioning from conventional practices to sustainable practices
• Have the objective of increasing their production and are interested in increasing their sales by gaining access to WCK's network of distributors, restaurants and hotels
• Are committed to participating in WCK’s capacity building program

If you have already received funds from WCK and intend to apply for additional funds, you should contact our team to discuss new funding opportunities. You can do so by writing to bahamas@wck.org.

What do we fund? 

Applicants can request between $5,000.00 to $20,000.00 in funds.

Some examples of projects funded in the past are:

• Infrastructure, equipment, and light or heavy machinery
• Water collection systems, irrigation systems, and the like
• Purchase and/or construction of greenhouses, storage units, cold storage facilities, animal structures, and similar agricultural infrastructure
• Construction related labor and contractor costs
• Seeds, compost, trees, inputs, and the like
• Industrial equipment for the conservation, procession, storage, packaging or distribution of food 
• Nets, lines, motors, GPS or other equipment for fishing

**Construction permits are required for the building of structures and/or wells.

Food Producer Network funds may NOT be used for the following:

• Purchase or installation of solar energy equipment
• Operating expenses such as employee payroll, utility bills (rent, water, electricity, etc.) or other recurring operating expenses
• Equipment maintenance costs or recurring purchases 
• Production of coffee, cocoa, sugarcane, herbs or medicinal plants

If you have concerns or questions about whether your project is eligible, please contact our team at bahamas@wck.org.

About this application 

This application is a combination of filling in the blank, multiple choice and written responses. Please plan at least an hour and a half to complete the application. You will be able to edit your answers while you are completing the application, but you will not be able to edit them once you submit your request. The system gives you the opportunity to save your progress and continue completing the application at a later time.

You must attach evidence of quotes and/or professional estimates for any expense greater than $500.00 that is part of your proposal. Start filling out the application when you have the quotes available, as your application will not be considered without them.

You will receive a notification via email when you have successfully completed the application. If you do not, please check your spam or junk inbox.

This application will be open from March 23 to April 23, 2021.