Reinvestment Fund is seeking food systems and food access experts to serve as application reviewers for the 2024-2025 HFFI Food Access and Retail Expansion Fund (HFFI FARE Fund).
HFFI is a public-private partnership administered by Reinvestment Fund on behalf of USDA Rural Development. In the 2024-2025 funding cycle, the HFFI FARE Fund will provide at least $9,000,000 for implementation grants, at least $1,500,000 for technical assistance, and at least $16,000,000 for loans to organizations planning and/or implementing healthy food retail or food retail supply chain projects in eligible, underserved areas.
We are seeking a diverse group of reviewers who have personal and professional experience with improving access to affordable, nutritious food through food retail. This includes individuals who have financing, entrepreneurship, nonprofit leadership, and food retail or food supply chain business sector expertise, as well as lived experience with food insecurity and injustice. Reviewer interest form submissions are due by Friday, January 10, 2025.
Reviewers will be asked to objectively evaluate grant applications against the published criteria in the competitive HFFI FARE Fund Request for Applications (RFA). Reviewers will be selected based on their qualifications, experience, and the number of grant applications received.
- Reviewers will be required to participate in a virtual webinar training session prior to reviewing the applications. This training is scheduled for Tuesday January 21, 2025 at 3pm ET/12pm PT.
- Reviews will be completed using an online portal over a three-week period from January 22 – February 12, 2025.
- No travel is required.
- Reviewers will receive a stipend following successful completion of application reviews. The stipend is $500.
Please submit your qualifications by filling out the reviewer interest form below. Reviewer interest form submissions are due by Friday, January 10, 2025. Respondents will be notified by January 17, 2025 about their selection as a reviewer.