Loan readiness for First Time Borrowers Resource Sheet
DOWNLOADNovember 10, 2025 - Jazmin Bolan-Williamson and Madelina DiLisi
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Applying for a loan for your farm or food business can feel overwhelming, especially if it’s your first time navigating the lending process. To help ease that experience, the Great Lakes Midwest Regional Food Business Center created this resource sheet following a June 2025 webinar focused on loan readiness for first-time borrowers. It’s designed to help entrepreneurs understand key financial terms, prepare essential documents, and approach lenders with confidence.
This guide walks you through the basics of borrowing—from understanding terms like collateral and interest rates to organizing your financial documents and exploring different types of loans. Whether you're seeking funding for equipment, expansion, or working capital, this resource will help you prepare for lender meetings and make informed decisions about financing options.
Watch the webinar here:
Resources
Center for Regional Food Systems Resources
- What You Need to Know: Loan Readiness for First Time Borrowers Webinar
- Loan Readiness Toolbox for Food and Farm Businesses
- Preparing for Funding: A Self-Guided Learning Journey for Food and Farm Businesses
Federal and State Resources
- U.S. Small Business Administration Loan Programs
- For help with business planning, market research, financial projections and more visit your local Small Business Development Center or SCORE offices.
Per the USDA announcement on July 15, 2025, the Regional Food Business Centers program was terminated, prior to its original end date of July 2028. Because of this, the Great Lakes Midwest Regional Food Business Center halted operations on September 15, 2025 and was unable to responsibly launch the Business Builder Subaward program. Please see our related press release. Resources intended to help food and farm businesses will remain freely available on this website and additional resources can be found at foodsystems.msu.edu/resources.
About the Great Lakes Midwest Regional Food Business Center
The Great Lakes Midwest Regional Food Business Center was dedicated to offering coordination, technical assistance, and capacity building opportunities for farmers, producers, and other food business owners in support of a more resilient and competitive food system. Michigan State University Center for Regional Food Systems (MI) coordinated the Great Lakes Midwest Regional Food Business Center comprised of network coordinators – Chicago Food Policy Action Council (IL), Northwest Indiana Food Council (IN), Food Finance Institute of the University of Wisconsin System (WI), and the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin Department of Agriculture and Food Systems – who sought to take a transformational, rather than transactional, approach. Learn more at glm-rfbc.msu.edu
