Fill-in template for the VDACS Specialty Crop Block Grant Program 2027 application cycle. Open this page when the 2027 RFA drops around December and substitute the bracketed placeholders with concrete narrative, numbers, and impact metrics. Scope shifts to hydroponic leafy greens for the 2027 cycle — building on the cold chain, buyer relationships, and grower network established under the 2026 specialty-crop-adjacent poultry outline.
IronRoost Farms, Inc. (Virginia C-Corp, SCC #12012225) is building a vertically integrated regional food platform out of Central Virginia. The 2027 SCBGP cycle retargets that platform toward hydroponic leafy greens — specialty crops produced in controlled-environment agriculture (CEA) on the same land base, cold chain, and mid-Atlantic buyer relationships established under the 2026 poultry pilot.
[FILL IN: Problem statement — frame the Mid-Atlantic fresh leafy-greens supply gap. Surface concrete data points on regional CEA capacity, Virginia-grown share of Mid-Atlantic foodservice leafy-greens purchases, and the post-COVID consolidation of fresh-cut processors. Reference the cold-chain footprint already built by the 2026 poultry pilot so the 2027 request does not feel like a new capital ask.]
[FILL IN: Grower-network rationale — the 2027 cycle shifts the on-farm economic uplift from contract poultry growers to contracted CEA operators. Reuse the language from the 2026 outline on fair-contract terms and grower autonomy, but substitute hydroponic greenhouse operators. Cross-reference the 2026 work plan (Months 1–24 timeline) where this parallels the existing grower-onboarding motion.]
[FILL IN: Buyer-outreach rationale — the PVG/Virginia Grown buyer pipeline mapped for poultry (PFG/Saval/Wholesome/UVA) is the same channel that buys fresh-cut leafy greens from regional producers. Name the specific cold-storage and refrigerated-van topology that makes the 2027 leafy-greens pilots leverageable without a parallel cold-chain investment cycle.]
VDACS evaluates SCBGP applications on demonstrable specialty-crop impact. The targets below are placeholders — Jean-Pierre confirms each number against the 2027 RFA scoring rubric and the V1 datasets already documented on the IronRoost pitch site.
Number of hydroponic operators under fair contract, and total CEA square footage transitioned to IronRoost-channeled production. Source: Team & Vision page for the operating-partner roster; Financials for acreage assumptions.
Annual poundage of hydroponic leafy greens processed, packed, and channeled to Mid-Atlantic foodservice buyers. Source: Pricing & Economics for $/lb by channel.
Named buyers with active purchase orders, mapped against the existing poultry distribution pipeline (PFG / Saval / Wholesome / UVA / restaurant-direct). Source: distribution pipeline.
Farm operations, CEA technician, packing-house, and farmer-liaison positions over the 24-month project period. Phase 2 expansion to 15+ jobs. Source: 5-year projections headcount build-out.
SCBGP 2027 standard match requirement is expected to hold at 20–25%, consistent with the Phase 1 grant stack documented on the Financials page (USDA MCap: 20% min; USDA RFSI: 25%). IronRoost's match remains funded by the $2.5M seed round and allocated operating capital — no new debt. The 2027 budget framework mirrors the 2026 categories; only the equipment line shifts from poultry handling to greenhouse / CEA hardware.
| Category | Item | Total Cost | SCBGP Request | IronRoost Match |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Personnel | Farmer Liaison (1.0 FTE, 24 mo) — hydroponic operator contracting & compliance | $TBD | $TBD | $TBD |
| Greenhouse / CEA Equipment | NFT/DWC systems, climate control, supplemental lighting, packing-line equipment | $TBD | $TBD | $TBD |
| Cold Chain / Distribution | Refrigerated van lease (12 mo), vacuum cooling, packaging, traceability software | $TBD | $TBD | $TBD |
| Buyer Onboarding & Marketing | Virginia Grown campaign, buyer demos, fresh-cut processor trade shows, printed collateral | $TBD | $TBD | $TBD |
| Indirect | Administrative overhead (10% de minimis rate) | $TBD | $TBD | $TBD |
| Project Total | $TBD | $TBD | $TBD | |
The 2027 budget categories reuse the structure of the 2026 working outline; only the equipment line shifts from poultry-handling hardware to greenhouse / CEA infrastructure. Personnel and grower contracting are expected to carry the largest share, consistent with FMLFPP's emphasis on-farm economic uplift over capital deployment. Match documentation lives on the Financials page — the seed deployment waterfall already funds match at the 44% level demonstrated in 2026.
VDACS requires applicants to map project work plan to SCBGP's four competitiveness objectives. Each row below carries an objective code (Obj. I – IV) and a placeholder for the IronRoost lever that addresses that objective. Confirm the objective names verbatim against the 2027 RFA when it drops.
Each row below pairs an open question for the 2027 cycle with a status pill — either On Site (already documented on this pitch site) or JP — gather (net-new, requires Jean-Pierre's direct sourcing before the December window). Items already on the pitch site are referenceable as supporting evidence inside the SCBGP application package.
IronRoost Farms, Inc., Virginia C-Corp (SCC #12012225), 2593 Cougar Lane, Locust Grove, VA 22508. Sole director & officer Jean-Pierre Maldonado. EIN on file. Reuse the entity documentation from the 2026 working outline.
Confirm the 2027 CEA footprint in square footage, projected weekly harvest poundage, and projected $/lb by foodservice vs. retail channel. Pricing placeholders on the Pricing & Economics page will need to be revised to specific hydroponic numbers.
The 2027 cycle retargets the grower-contracting motion from poultry growers to hydroponic operators. JP to name specific CEA partners, fair-contract terms, and the greenhouse / vertical-farm footprint each brings to the network.
The existing poultry distribution pipeline — PFG, Saval, Wholesome, UVA / institutional, restaurant-direct — is on the Pricing & Economics page and likely carries over to leafy-greens channeling. Confirm which buyers accept fresh-cut regional leafy greens under their existing PO structure.
Cross-referenced on the pricing page for the 2026 poultry pilot. For 2027 leafy-greens, JP to confirm GAP audit readiness for the CEA operators, name any hydroponic-system-specific food-safety protocols, and surface the cold-chain handling SOP already in place from the poultry pilot.
5-year projections and the seed deployment waterfall live on the Financials page. Match structure (seed-funded operating capital, not debt) is expected to hold for 2027; figures may revise if the 2027 RFA ceilings move.
JP to confirm when the 2027 RFA drops in December that hydroponic leafy greens remain an in-scope specialty-crop category, and surface any new competitiveness-objective language vs. the 2026 outline. Confirm the 20–25% match minimum and the project ceiling range.