In June of 2022, KCD issued a Request for Proposals for a 3rd party evaluation of the Regional Food System grants programs. The purpose of this study is to evaluate previous and current grants to determine program effectiveness and impact. We received four responsive proposals by the deadline of August 5th, 2022. Cardea Services of Seattle Washington was selected as the winning bidder for this project after a thorough review and scoring process.
King Conservation District
RFP 2022_06_17
Regional Food System Grant Program Evaluation
King Conservation District seeks an independent consultant or consulting team to plan and implement a third-party evaluation of its Regional Food System Competitive Grants program.
KCD’s Regional Food System Grant Program supports projects that contribute to the economic viability of local farmers, encourage new farmers, expand acreage in food production, improve food access, and increase demand for King County farm products. In 2015 KCD established the program based on the King County Kitchen Cabinet and the Puget Sound Regional Council action plans, and engagement with a wide range of local food system advisors.
The program awards competitive grants and strategic investments totaling at least $900,000 annually.
Eligible applicants for competitive grants include farmers, producer networks, marketing cooperatives, farmers markets, businesses, schools, special districts, nonprofit organizations, tribes, and jurisdictions within KCD’s service area. Historically strategic investments have been made in four areas: Infrastructure, Scaling Up, Farmland Access, and Institutional Demand.
The proposal deadline was 3pm PST, August 5, 2022.