NEHA-FDA RFFM Grant Program Home

The National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) and U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) work in partnership to administer the NEHA-FDA Retail Flexible Funding Model (RFFM) Grant Program. The program provides funding to State, Local, Tribal, and Territorial (SLTT) retail food regulatory agencies as they advance conformance with the Voluntary National Retail Food Regulatory Program Standards (Retail Program Standards). FDA is utilizing our strengths to assist SLTT retail food programs in their efforts to reduce the occurrence of foodborne illness risk factors and implement and attain conformance with the Retail Program Standards.

Calendar Year 2023 Award Update 

Thank you to the second-year grant program participants and congratulations to all grantees. With the goal of advancing FDA's Retail Program Standards, we awarded 391 grants totaling $3.1 million in funding to 213 unique state, local, tribal, and territorial jurisdictions nationwide. Including Year 2 of the three-year Grants that were awarded in 2022, the NEHA-FDA RFFM Grant Program will provide nearly $7.4 million to jurisdictions for Retail Program Standards work to be completed during CY 2023. A summary of year 2 fund distribution can be found on the Years 1 and 2 Grant Awards page. 

Key Dates 

• July 14, 2023: CY 2023 Interim Reports due 
• August 16, 2023: CY 2024 Application Portal opens 
• October 11 2023: CY 2024 Application Portal closes, Proposals are due at 7:59 pm ET
• January 1, 2024: Grant Performance Period begins for all CY 2024 Awards
• December 31, 2024: Grant Performance Period ends for all Awards (Y1, Y2, Y3)

Year 3 Grant Opportunities

State, local, tribal, and territorial retail food regulatory programs can apply for a base grant (through one of two tracks) and up to three additional add-on grants (for Track 2 applicants and Track 3 grantees). When the portal opens on August 11, consider applying for:

• A Track 1 Development Base Grant with options to be a mentee and/or attend a SA VA workshop.
• A Track 2 Development Base Grant with options to be a mentee, work on Standard 9, and/or attend Retail training courses.
• Optional Add-On Grants: 
  • In addition to the options above, Track 2 applicants may also apply to be a mentor (instead of a mentee), and/or apply for a Special Projects Grant.
  • Existing Track 3 Maintenance and Advancement Base Grantees may apply to be a mentor or a mentee, request funds for Retail training courses, and/or apply for a Special Projects Grant.

Current Grantees

Grantees can use the "Access the Grant Portal" link to log in to the Grant Portal using your existing username and password.

From the Grant Portal:

• View and print granted and declined applications
• View and print official NEHA-FDA RFFM Grant Program Award Letters
• Access required reports and due dates, file reports, and request payments

Grantees should review the Reporting and Payments requirements.

The NEHA-FDA RFFM Reimbursement Request Excel Template, required with all Reimbursement Requests, is also available for download on the Reporting and Payments page.

Hear what our grantees have to say about their experience on our Grantee Testimonials page.

Contact

For more information and support, contact:

NEHA-FDA Retail Flexible Funding Model Grant Program Support Team

Email: retailgrants@neha.org
Toll-Free: 1-833-575-2404

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