Women-owned ag businesses receive grants from INFB

INDIANAPOLIS — Ten women-owned agriculture-related small businesses received $1,000 grants from Indiana Farm Bureau this year.

The grants will help recipients pursue training and professional development, invest in technology upgrades, or purchase equipment to strengthen and expand their businesses.

“In celebration of the International Year of the Woman Farmer, we wanted to help provide more opportunities for women to succeed in farming and agribusiness,” said Chelsea Poe, INFB’s executive director of education and engagement.

“This initiative also aligns with one of our top priorities this year to create incentives for rural entrepreneurship and agricultural diversification. We know funding can be a huge roadblock in growing a business, so hopefully this grant will alleviate that hurdle for some.”

The 2026 winners are:

• Tana Long — Bluejay Homestead: This Starke County business is a fresh-milled flour bakery that also offers value-added farm products. Long plans to use her grant to increase production capacity and expand into additional products.

• Stephanie Strothmann — Purple Shamrock Farm: This Jackson County business would like to increase marketing efforts for its upcycled dog treats and expand distribution across Indiana.

• Shannon Tieken — Samara Acres LLC: This Clay County business that produces local honey, beeswax candles and artisan products would like to use the grant funds to update equipment to meet standards for a wholesale food processor licensing.

• Marybeth McDaniel — MBee’s Honey Farm: This Benton County business would like to add more hives to its apiary and support beekeeping education.

• Madelynn Keiffer — Lavender and Lace Florals LLC: This Huntington County full-service florist would like to use grant funds to update equipment and increase marketing efforts.

• Suzanne and Lauren Flanders — Simply from Scratch: This Hamilton County farm-to-table mobile grocery would like to use grant funds to update equipment to improve product quality and increase storage capacity.

• Kristen Tackett — The Harvested Homestead on 13: This Wabash County self-serve farmstand would like to use grant funds to purchase equipment to display its pork products.

• Jenna Blue — Blue Family Farms: This La Porte County premium cut flower and dahlia tuber farm plans to use the grant funds to purchase equipment to extend its growing season and expand educational programming.

• Beverly Sharritt — Flying Dirt Farm: This Madison County specialty cut-flower farm would like to use the grant funds to participate in professional development and educational opportunities to refine business operations.

• Aimee Jo Albright — Albright Acres Flower Farm and Nursery: This Hendricks County business would like to use the grant funds to equip a permanent farm store with supplies to provide consistent retail space and improve customer experience.