Assistance program
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education
$327.9 Million committed in FY2018–FY2026
- Agency
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Agriculture, Department of
- Assistance
- Project Grants
- CFDA number
- 10.215
- What it does
- The purpose of the SARE program, under assistance listing 10.215, is to encourage research and extension projects designed to increase knowledge concerning agricultural production systems that: (1) maintain and enhance the quality and productivity of the soil; (2) conserve soil, water, energy, natural resources, and fish and wildlife habitat; (3) maintain and enhance the quality of surface and ground water; (4) protect the health and safety of persons involved in the food and farm system; (5) promote the well-being of animals; and (6) increase employment opportunities in agriculture. For purposes of this program, sustainable agriculture is defined by section 1404 of the National Agricultural Research, Extension and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (7 USC 3103(19)) as an integrated system of plant and animal production practices having a site-specific application that over the long-term will satisfy human food and fiber needs; enhance environmental quality and the natural resource base upon which the agriculture economy depends; make the most efficient use of non-renewable and on farm resources and integrate, where appropriate, natural biological cycles and controls; sustain the economic viability of farm and ranch operations; and enhance the quality of life for farmers and ranchers and society as a whole.
- Who benefits
- Land-grant colleges or universities, other universities, State agricultural experiment stations, State cooperative extension services, nonprofit organizations, and individuals with demonstrable expertise, or Federal or State governmental entities.
- Who applies
- Land-grant colleges or universities, other universities, State agricultural experiment stations, State cooperative extension services, nonprofit organizations, and individuals with demonstrable expertise, or Federal or State governmental entities.
- Authorized by
- 7 U.S.C. § 5811 - 5814
- 7 U.S.C. § 5831 - 5832
Committed by fiscal year
* FY2026 is year-to-date — the fiscal year is still in progress, so its total is still filling in. The striped band and dashed line mark that provisional stretch.
Top recipients
By dollars committed.
How to read these numbers
- Committed through this program
Money committed under this assistance listing (its CFDA program), counted in the year each action happened.
- How it's paid
Most programs pay out one way — a grant, or a direct payment to individuals; the flow bar only appears when a program genuinely mixes types.
- Some recipients aren't itemized
For entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare, the government reports one aggregate instead of naming tens of millions of people, so the recipient roster isn't part of the public record.
- Awards, counted once
An award count is the number of distinct awards with at least one action that year — each counted once, however many times it was amended.
- The colored bars
Every bar on this page splits by how the money moves:
Direct payments