Congratulations to Michigan’s SARE grant recipients
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EmailLearn more about the 10 new Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) projects funded for 2025.
Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education
Michigan will be the home of 10 new Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) projects led by farmers, researchers, teachers and farm organizations. SARE grants fund sustainable farming innovations that contribute to Michigan’s economy, ecology and the wellbeing of our farmers and communities. You can read this article or check out the Map of Michigan North Central SARE Grants highlighting Michigan’s recent SARE projects.
SARE Farmer Rancher grants
Congratulations to all the farmers and ranchers who have been funded for SARE projects to improve social, economic and environmental sustainability on their farms! SARE just announced six Michigan farmers who were awarded 2025 Farmer Rancher grants. Follow the links to learn more about each of their projects.
Ryan Fairbanks of Dancing Crane Farm will be evaluating the efficacy and sustainability of hemp seed meal as an alternative feed ingredient for pastured laying hens. Josiah Foster of Growing Hope and partner farm Willow Run Acres will investigate and build two mobile solutions for food safety and sustainability, empowering farmers and communities in Ypsilanti, Michigan. Rebecca Gentner of Tree Hugger Maple will run a feasibility study of implementing solar pumps into gravity lines for maple sap collection. Lance Kraai of New City Neighbors received funding for evaluating the viability of farm meal kits for small-scale farms. Phimmasome Kym Owens of Refugee Garden Initiatives will plant and manage a refugee healing garden. Brittney Rooney of Beaverland Farms LLC will partner with Fisheye Farms to share access to a cooperatively owned soil steamer on urban farms in Detroit, Michigan.
Other 2025 SARE grants
SARE Partnership Grants connect three or more farmers with an agriculture professional or educator to collaborate on a project important to sustainable agriculture. In 2025, Jill Dohner of MI FarmLink and Washtenaw County Conservation District has been funded to survey farmers, host a meet and greet and share results about connecting new and retiring farmers for land access opportunities as part of her project, Key Components of a Successful Negotiation.
SARE Youth Educator grants fund farmers, teachers and youth groups to connect young people with opportunities to engage in growing food and learn about career opportunities in agriculture. Through the Building Healthy Soils, Selves, and Communities project, Kacee Jones of Community Farm of Ann Arbor, Michigan, will create an internship program for youth to focus on climate change and personal growth. Ami Zijlstra will guide youth in learning about soils, plants and water through designing and planting the Prospect Hill Farm School Food Forest.
2024 SARE grants
Many of the 2024 SARE projects in Michigan are just getting started and haven’t been shared by a Michigan State University Extension newsletter yet. Here is your shout out!
2024 Farmer Rancher grants included:
- Evaluating a “soft pesticide” program for wine grapes in the Great Lakes region for 2024
- Establishment best practices for trees producing edible pine nuts in the North Central United States with Abby Johnson of Ox Heights
- Demonstration of low impact tractor cultivation in a regenerative farm model to increase production using equipment sharing on multiple farms led by Gina Kerr of Whispering Wild Market Farm
- Darla Kroft will dive into marketing native, new, and unfamiliar culinary plants: sample marketing plan and tools for pineberries, groundnuts, and other new and unique crops
Three Michigan MS and PhD students were awarded three Graduate Student grants in 2024. Rekha Bhandari of Michigan State University (MSU) will study interactive effects of leaf pulling and non-toxic chemical interventions on rot management in north central region vineyards. DeShae Dillard of MSU has been working on harnessing Diptera diversity as a bioindicator for carbon and nitrogen loss during litter decomposition. Cynthia Fiser at MSU is reaching out to farmers for their perspectives on barriers to adoption of prairie strips.
Michigan was also awarded two very competitive Research and Education grants in 2024, including a project comparing tree nursery techniques on urban farms led by Naim Edwards of MSU Extension. Aaron McKim, PhD, is using land-based learning to engage Michigan youth in on-farm sustainability in diverse communities through awarding mini-grants to farms to engage youth and then creating a “Farmer’s Guide to Land-Based Learning.”
Michigan agriculture professionals were awarded three Partnership grants to collaborate with three or more farmers on an project significant to sustainable agriculture. These projects are investigating better strategies for cover cropping, irrigation for Christmas trees and breeding mite-resistant queen bees.
Derrienne Reese of Asibara Forest is creating educational and nature equity with an urban food forest initiative in Detroit through funding by a North Central SARE Youth Educator grant.
What is SARE?
SARE supports sustainable farming innovations through offering resources, grants, mini-grants and travel scholarships. Farmers, ranchers, educators, farm advocacy organizations, MSU Extension staff, researchers and agriculture professionals are welcome to apply. State SARE coordinator Sarah Zeiler, Tribal SARE coordinator Emily Proctor and SARE grants and beginning farmer educator Katie Brandt are happy to help you brainstorm and review a SARE proposal. They can also help if you have questions about SARE’s database of farmer-led research results and information.
The 2025 SARE Graduate Student grant is accepting proposals until May 29. This will fund $20,000 for graduate student research on sustainable agriculture.
SARE has distributed $11.6 million to fund 342 grant projects in Michigan since 1988. The program supports an inclusive mix of farmers and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program or political beliefs.
