Assisting Specialty Crop Exports: Low Oxygen Storage and Packaging Systems for U.S. Tree Nuts with Phytosanitary Traceability
🏛 Foreign Agricultural Service (USDA-FAS)
✓ Free, no account · Source: Grants.gov · Last verified Oct 19, 2026
Can you apply?
This grant is for organizations seeking to develop technologies for low-oxygen storage and packaging systems for U.S. tree nuts with verifiable phytosanitary traceability.
Eligible applicants include U.S. academic institutions, state governments, nonprofits (with or without 501(c)(3) status), U.S. trade associations, agricultural cooperatives, international organizations, foreign entities, and private businesses. All applicants must maintain active SAM.gov registration before the award date.
The grant supports research and development of digital mapping, oxygen monitoring, and record-keeping systems that verify low-oxygen conditions meet phytosanitary requirements. Technologies must be economically viable and verifiable for commercial export markets.
Funding covers projects that address insect pest control, residue elimination, and product quality maintenance for tree nut exports without fumigation or freezing.
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Program description
The occurrence of insects as well as pesticide residuals can be significant barriers for U.S. horticultural exports. Each importing country can have unique phytosanitary and maximum residue limit (MRL) requirements, which creates operational and logistical challenges. To maximize return to growers, U.S. shippers need tools that can universally address all such requirements while maintaining product quality. Currently, tree nuts and many other durable specialty crops require fumigations or freezing, which are both expensive and create bottlenecks in marketing.
More and more tree nut handlers are using a modified atmosphere (MA) or controlled atmosphere (CA) technology in which low-oxygen conditions (<1% by volume) are maintained during storage and/or in packaging. Low-oxygen conditions are known to control insect pests, leave no chemical residuals, and result in high quality products since the lipid oxidation that causes rancidity is markedly suppressed. While this approach is being used as a condition of sale, there is currently no efficient way for shippers to validate the low-oxygen conditions for customers, let alone importers with phytosanitary requirements for insect control. Technically and economically viable, verifiable, and preferably traceable technologies are critically needed before low-oxygen storage and packaging approaches can be used for export to most countries.
Currently, the existing low-oxygen technologies do not incorporate digital mapping or official record-keeping during the packing or storage process, so there is no non-invasive manner to verify the oxygen content over time within the gas-impermeable liners and/or confirm seal integrity. This limits the ability to verify that a low-oxygen environment has been maintained at a specific oxygen level over a certain period of time, which would be necessary to ensure the conditions were met to act as a phytosanitary treatment. Counties such as India, Korea, and Japan require phytosanitary treatments, such as fumigation, for post-harvest pest management before many types of U.S. tree nuts can be imported into the countries. Additionally, buyers in other markets also request pest management treatments as a condition of sale in commercial transactions.
Who can apply
Eligible applicants
How to apply
Application links
Key dates & requirements
Required documents
- SF-424 (Application for Federal Assistance)
- Project Narrative/Technical Proposal
- Budget and Budget Justification
- Organizational Registration (SAM.gov verification)
- Letters of Support or Commitment from industry partners
- Organizational Capability/Qualifications documentation
Program contact
- 👤 Kendra Arrington Grantor
- 📧 Angel.Gonzalez@usda.gov
- 📞 202-690-5503
Funding track record
Recent awards under CFDA 10.621 from the last 3 years — real organizations that won funding through this same program.
Top 10 Largest Recent Awards
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$5,000,000
-
$5,000,000
-
$4,750,000
-
$4,481,164
-
$4,000,000
-
$2,999,993
-
$2,500,000
-
$2,000,000
-
$477,693
Top States by Funding
- SC 1 awards $5.0M
- DE 1 awards $4.8M
- OR 1 awards $3.0M
- IA 1 awards $2.5M
- NC 1 awards $2.0M
Source: USAspending.gov — federal spending transparency. Data covers last 3 years.
Funding history
Annual funding for this program — Federal obligations (CFDA 10.621). How funding has trended year over year.
| 2024 | $7,907,552 | |
| 2025 | $17,536,324 | |
| 2026 est. | $20,145,522 |
FAQ
Who can apply for this grant?
U.S. academic institutions, nonprofits, trade associations, agricultural cooperatives, state governments, private businesses, and international/foreign entities are eligible. All must have active SAM.gov registration before award.
What is the funding amount available?
The total pool is $2,000,000, with award amounts not specified in the guidelines. Contact the agency for estimated individual award ranges.
What technologies are you looking to fund?
Projects must develop verifiable, traceable systems for low-oxygen storage/packaging that validate oxygen conditions, confirm seal integrity, and maintain digital records for phytosanitary compliance.
Is cost-sharing required?
No, cost-sharing is not required for this grant. However, demonstrating institutional commitment through in-kind contributions may strengthen competitiveness.
When is the deadline?
The deadline is October 26, 2026. This is a fixed deadline, so submit applications well in advance of that date.
💡 Tips for applicants
- Focus on market barriers: explain how your technology solves real export challenges for tree nut handlers facing phytosanitary requirements in countries like India, Korea, and Japan.
- Emphasize verification and traceability: reviewers want technologies that provide official, non-invasive proof of oxygen conditions over time. Digital mapping and record-keeping are critical.
- Connect to grower economics: show how your solution reduces costs compared to fumigation or freezing while maintaining product quality and market access.
- Address multiple markets: demonstrate how your technology can work across different countries' phytosanitary requirements, not just a single market.
- Include realistic commercialization: propose clear pathways for adoption by tree nut handlers and exporters, including cost structure and implementation timelines.
⚠️ Common mistakes
Applications fail when they focus only on oxygen control technology without addressing phytosanitary verification and digital traceability. Proposals that lack clear cost comparisons to existing fumigation/freezing methods appear insufficiently grounded in market realities. Projects without specific timelines for commercialization or adoption by industry are seen as lacking practical feasibility.
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