American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009
Aquaculture Grant Program
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), also known as the federal stimulus bill,
was signed into law on Feb. 17, 2009. Recognizing the impact of high feed costs on aquaculture producers
in 2008 when the cost of soybean and corn-based ingredients reached record levels, Section 102(d) of the
Recovery Act provides $50 million of funds to administer the 2008 Aquaculture Grant Program (AGP). The AGP
will assist aquaculture producers for those losses associated with high feed input costs during the 2008 calendar year.
To administer the AGP, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) will provide
block grants to State Departments of Agriculture that agree to provide assistance to eligible aquaculture producers.
The Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA) has agreed to provide such assistance.
ODA has received approval from USDA to extend the application deadline to Thursday, October 8th.
Historical average fish feed prices and program participation "threshold values" have changed.
Please use the updated application and updated checklist to submit your request. Be sure to use the revised
"average prices" to compute reimbursement values.
ODA officials are optimistic that more producers will be able to participate in the Aquaculture Grant Program. If you have any questions or need additional clarification, please call Jeff Kalbus at (614) 728-2620.
(see Application & Instructions for details)
Aquaculture Grants Program Offers $63,202
(Information pertaining to the 2008 Aquaculture Assistance Program can be found in Title I-Agriculture,
Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies, Pages 11-12.)
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