Apiculture Business Financing

Center For Rural Affairs (CFRA) REAP

  • REAP provides loans to business 6%APR
  • Can do value-added product businesses 
  • cfra.org/reap

Farm Service Agency Loans (FSA) 

  • Provides loans to businesses 3.62%APR
  • Must be a producer
  • Has priorities for underserved communities (women, Latinos, African Americans, veterans and beginning farmers)
  • Must have a basic business plan when you meet with them (not required to be a landowner)
  • Contact your county FSA Office

Value-Added Producer Grant (VAPG) 

  • Helps agriculture producers enter into the value-added product market. 
  • 50% match of total project value 
  • Funds may be used for processing costs, marketing, and advertising expenses & Some inventory and salary expenses
  • Visit rd.usda.gov to find the application

USDA Rural Business Enterprise Grant Program

  • Be a nonprofit or private corporation.
  • Have fewer than 50 employees.
  • Be located in a rural area outside a city with a population of 50,000 or more.
  • Have less than $1 million in annual gross revenue.
  • Amounts are typically between $10,000 and $500,000 and can be used for land and equipment. 
  • Visit the grants.gov website for more details

Emergency Assistance for Livestock Honeybees and Farm-raised Fish Program (ELAP) and Livestock Indemnity Program (LIP)

  • Provide financial assistance for livestock losses due to disease, and certain adverse weather conditions (including blizzards and wildfires).
  • Eligible losses: honey bee feed, colony and hive losses reported with a notice of loss within 30 days after a loss is apparent. 
  • Producers can apply to receive ELAP assistance at local FSA service centers. 
  • For additional information visit the fact sheet at www.fsa.usda.gov/ELAP