FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
July 17, 2025
CONTACT: Maya Martinez,
NM Farmer Innovation Program Director
(505) 470-5011
maya@farmtotablenm.org
Farm to Table’s Farmer Innovation Program
Awards 2025 Urban Agriculture Micro-Grants
Grants will Increase the Capacity of New Mexico’s
Small-scale Food Growers
SANTA FE, N.M. - Farm to Table's (FTT) New Mexico Farmer Innovation Program (NMFIP) announced that 13 projects in nine counties throughout New Mexico will receive funds in the 2025 grant cycle of the Urban Agriculture Initiative’s Micro-Grants.
These grants have been awarded to urban farmers, ranchers and food enterprises across New Mexico in support of projects which increase or improve healthy food access in urban and Tribal communities and small towns. (see list of recipients). They are awarded in partnership with the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) Urban Agriculture Initiative. Urban is defined as “populations over 5,000 people or 2,000 households” from the USDA Census Bureau.
The grant application process was competitive, with the goal of supporting producers to increase their capacity. All of the recipients operate with a gross cash income of $250,000 or less annually. The focus on supporting capacity building for diverse small-scale producers in urban communities is an important investment in the state’s food ecosystem and will help deliver locally-grown and nutritious products directly to urban communities.
Maya Martinez, Farmer Innovation Program Director said, “We are excited to move out the second year of micro grants. This round of Micro-Grants will continue to help improve farm sustainability and long term viability at farms throughout New Mexico, continuing food chain resiliency in their communities across the state.”
The 2025 round of Urban Agriculture Micro-Grants received a total of 72 applications from 15 counties, with a total of $1,221,867 in funding requested. In partnership with the USDA, the New Mexico Farmer Innovation Program is able to assist 13 farms with a total of $114,000 funds awarded throughout New Mexico. The projects range from creating season extension capacity, working with soil amendments, cold storage to increase farm expansion, milk and cheese production expansion, hydroponic facility, farm equipment purchase, building high tunnels and greenhouse expansion, irrigation enhancement, renovations to a farm and expanding permaculture practices.
“The relationship between food and farms in New Mexico is underscored by the commitment that these grant recipients demonstrate.” said Pam Roy, Executive Director of Farm to Table. “These projects will expand farmers' business opportunities, strengthen local food systems, create greater resilience, and support regional economies.”
List of Grant Recipients
Ben Farms
This funding from Farm to Table will strengthen Ben Farms’ ability to produce, preserve, and distribute traditional crops—particularly dried steamed corn—a staple that has sustained our people for generations. Additionally, it will support our long-term goal of becoming an approved producer and supplier of traditional Navajo foods in New Mexico and beyond. By the end of this project, we will have a fully operational irrigation system and an expanded drying capacity, strengthening our farm’s sustainability and food security for our community.
KC Gardens LLC
This funding will source a project focused on a year-round Hydroponic Operation to increase fresh food access to the community in the colder months where the climate in the area makes it difficult to grow outdoors. All while helping educate our future up and coming farmers.The main goal to fulfill this project will be to retrofit a shipping container into a well-insulated and environment regulated state of the art smart hydroponic facility which will provide leafy greens in the heat of summer as well as the cold of winter.
Happy Valley Farm
With funding for this project the farm hopes to be able to advance produce variety, availability and longevity. The farm will purchase a10’x10’ CoolBot air conditioner type walk-in cooler, 200 units strawberry starts, grow bags and growing medium.
Taylor Hood Farms LLC
The project goal is to increase the availability of locally produced eggs to underserved communities in Las Cruces, NM and Dona Ana County.The project will involve building infrastructure to provide: the safe and sanitary housing of 250 hens and chicks; a wash station to facilitate the cleaning and packaging of 150-200 eggs per day; a cold storage unit to facilitate storage of eggs and feed.
Hazy Foothills Permaculture
The main goal of this project is to purchase and install a cold storage unit by June 2025. This increased storage capacity will allow us to increase our fresh vegetable and fruit production by 4 fold.The funding would allow our farm to meet this rising demand, continue increasing food security by providing locally grown, nutritious, and sustainably produced food while aiding in the area's economic development and fostering a sense of community and agricultural education.
Tumbleweed Farms
This project would assist us in providing our community with access to more of organically grown, fresh produce by adding 4 months to our growing season and conserving water resources. This project would include the installation and completion of a functional, climate-controlled hoop house. The project will extend the growing season, improve water and soil conservation, protect crops from adverse weather, and prevent wildlife damage, allowing the farm to provide fresh, organic produce to Gallup, Grants, and the surrounding Navajo Reservation.
Nizhoni Farms
This project will allow the farm to buy and utilize a walk in a cold room. The ability to grow more vegetables, harvest at the peak of freshness and store properly for quality, will allow our farm to feed more individuals and families in our community. By harvesting and storing throughout the week, it will be more efficient, while providing better quality vegetables with less waste. Time is critical on the farm and this change allows us to perform other critical farm tasks (weeding, bed and compost management, fertilizing, and irrigation maintenance and repair) which ultimately supports increased productivity, quality and sustainability.
Garcia Road Farm
This project includes the purchase of a two-wheel tractor and attachments, Our project goal is to create and sustain approximately 4,000 sq. feet of market garden beds in which to produce locally grown, affordable, and nutritious produce in a socially, ecologically, and financially sustainable manner, and to sell the produce through the NM Grown Approved Supplier Program (ASP) and the Double-up Food Bucks Program, filling a nutritional
Reyah Sunshine Farm, LLC
Reyah Sunshine Farm, led by Managing Partner Asher Singer, is implementing a Conservation Infrastructure Implementation project to expand production capacity while improving conservation practices. The project includes converting the pumping plant from gas to electric, installing underground distribution piping, and connecting electricity and well water to the high tunnel. These improvements will support season extension, increased growing capacity, and enhanced conservation efforts.
The A la Veggie Farm Collective
The Farm would like to increase the cultivable area of the farm to address food insecurity in the greater Santa Fe region. With a good well, good water, and a decent land base (2.6 acres) in the urban periphery, the farm is well positioned to expand operations. The addition of a salvaged glass greenhouse will allow us to produce more specialty crops, seed start more successfully, and extend the growing season. A la Veggie Farm Collective needs to purchase several dozen yards of locally-sourced biochar and compost to amend the soil in the area of expansion, purchase salvage materials to build a 447sqft glass greenhouse, and install underground water infrastructure and nontoxic drip irrigation. One of our project goals is to model how to consistently and reliably produce a variety of nutritious crops, including grains, legumes, storage crops, and organic eggs on a low water budget in our aridifying climate through organic soil amendments and season extension infrastructure.
The Community Pantry
This project is to expand the Pantry's farming efforts, including at its Grants location, the Grants Community Pantry. The Grants Pantry will soon move to a new location that will include farming similar to Gallup's location, including a greenhouses, community garden, fruit trees, and a bee hive. At the new location, there's enough room for a chile and corn field. The Community Pantry will be able to grow more fruit and vegetables for area residents. The Pantry's 5 to 10 Year Plan includes the effort of becoming much less reliant on out of state growers by growing more locally and expanding on educating the public in growing methods, including traditional and cultural.
Brewer Orchards
This grant provides resources to prepare land and irrigation for a pomegranate orchard.
This funding will address the lack of fresh produce, and effects created on the local economy by working in partnerships with small businesses, four contacted and willing to partner to date, creating market opportunities and enabling economic growth for these individuals. By collaborating with these local individuals to provide the needed healthy produce at a discounted rate, the businesses, in turn, do value added processing, sell various homemade products and produce at markets in the Tularosa Basin and surrounding communities.
Camino de Paz
The Project will increase local milk, cheese and produce production and distribution across Northern New Mexico's underserved communities. Enhance animal husbandry practices, improve horticultural, grazing, sanitation, composting, soil nutrition and water conservation practices. The project includes a remodel of our existing milking parlor increased speed and reduced stress allows for twice per day milking, the installation of a utility trailer and the redesign of our animal feeding brings economies of scale, simplifying logistics and material handling, raising production, reducing labor costs, decreasing congestion and enhancing cleanliness and safety for both humans and animals.
Farm to Table’s mission is to build a local, healthy, equitable and sustainable food system. Farm to Table firmly believes that access to food is a basic human right. We also affirm that access to regionally grown healthy and culturally relevant food is paramount to the health and economic wellbeing and sustainability of communities. As such, our work is centered on investing in New Mexico’s communities, farmers, children, and the environment.
These Micro-Grants are awarded through Farm to Table’s Farmer Innovation Program in partnership with the USDA/FSA Urban Agriculture Initiative through the Urban and Innovative Agriculture Community-Based Organization Fund.
USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender.
For more information about this program contact:
Maya Martinez, maya@farmtotablenm.org or Edith Martinez, edith@farmtotablenm.org
www.farmtotablenm.org
###
