The Sewall Foundation is committed to working with our grantee and philanthropic partners to co-create a thriving, healthy, and just food system where local communities are guiding decisions about, and have abundant access to, the resources needed for collective well-being and the foods that remind us we belong.  

2025 available funding: $1,870,000

Program Contact: Kristina Kalolo, Community Partner

Photo courtesy of Maine Coast Fishermen’s Association

Priorities

The Food Systems program will support efforts that are working in one or more of the follow areas in Maine:

  • Food justice

  • Food sovereignty

  • Land and water sovereignty and access

  • Nutrition equity

  • Food networks

  • Food policy

Funding will be prioritized for efforts that:

  • Are led by, and/or serving, Black, Indigenous, People of Color, rural Mainers, and women that strengthen Maine’s local food system

  • Are equity-driven, grassroots efforts guided by the expertise of those closest to the injustices of our current food system

  • Contribute to the viability of healthy and just food systems (this may be through resourcing, technical assistance, capacity building, partnerships, etc.)

  • Resource communities most affected by racial and socioeconomic inequity to build collective power and wealth

  • Support both the immediate material conditions of those in need and the emergence of sovereign and just food systems

  • Are smaller and have barriers to accessing resources (e.g., historically marginalized groups, fiscally sponsored work, etc.)

Grantmaking

2025 Available Funding: $1,870,000

Generally, grant funding levels in this program area are:

  • Individual organizations/efforts: $10,000 to $60,000 (per year)

    • Increased funding amounts may be available to organizations that meet multiple program priority areas.

    • 1-5 year proposals will be considered.

  • Collaborations/efforts involving multiple organizations/groups: up to $200,000 (per year)

    • Occasionally, organizations may apply for both organizational and collaborative funds.

    • 1-5 year proposals will be considered.

  • Transformational opportunities: variable funding levels

    • The purpose of transformational opportunities is to address critical community priorities and create sustainable, systemic changes. These efforts should advance processes and approaches that heal, correct unjust conditions and structures, and create conditions for fair access to power, resources, and opportunities.

    • Generally, 1-2 year proposals will be considered.

2025 Application Information

Applications are due by February 13, at 5pm. Grant decisions will be announced by the end of April, 2025.

2025 Food Systems Grants Fact Sheet

We recommend reviewing the 2025 Sewall Grant Application Guide prior to starting an application, which includes guidelines, instructions, application questions and a description of attachments. For your reference, a word document of the application questions can be found here.

If this is your first time applying to the Sewall Foundation, we recommend following our Creating an Account Guide for step by step instructions.

Click on the button to start a new application, or return to an in-progress application.

Grantee Story

We’re pleased to present this series of articles on our inspiring grant partners.

Presente! Maine has received six Sewall grants since its inception in 2020: three Rapid Response grants, and three Healthy People Healthy Places Food Systems grants. Read to learn how Presente! is meeting the complex needs of Maine’s Afro/Indigenous and Latinx communities.