Assisting Specialty Crop Exports: Low Oxygen Storage and Packaging Systems for U.S. Tree Nuts with Phytosanitary Traceability
Foreign Agricultural Service · Assisting Specialty Crop Exports (10.621)
Posted 24 Aug 2026 · 26 days left
In plain terms
The US Foreign Agricultural Service funds projects to develop low-oxygen storage and packaging systems for tree nuts that control insects without chemical residuals and maintain product quality. Grants up to 2 million US dollars are available to US and foreign academic institutions, governments, nonprofits, trade associations, cooperatives, and private businesses, with applications due by 26 October 2026.
A generated summary of the donor's text; the original wording is below.
Summary
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.…
Excerpt from the donor's page. The full text, annexes and forms are on the original call.
Eligible regions
- global
Who can apply
- academia_research
- government
- ngo_cso
- private_company
- other
Eligibility and conditions
Show the eligibility text from the source
Applicant types: Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)
This opportunity is available to U.S. academic institutions, state governments, nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) designation, U.S. trade associations, U.S. agricultural cooperatives, international organizations, foreign entities, and any other entity including private sector businesses.All applicants must have an active registration in the U.S. Government System for Award Management (www.sam.gov) before the date of award. Applicants with inactive, expired, pending, or excluded listings will be deemed ineligible. Exceptions, waivers, or extensions will not be considered. More information about SAM.gov registration can be found in this document in Section 9, Other Information.