St. Paul, MN: The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) has announced the recipients of the County Agricultural Inspector Grant for fiscal year 2026. All 47 counties that applied for grant money qualified and will be awarded $10,300 each.
The money will be used by county agricultural inspectors (CAIs) to carry out duties under the Minnesota Noxious Weed Law. CAIs perform vital tasks that protect the environment from noxious weeds. The funds will be used for local noxious weed detection, management, and enforcement efforts. These grants were made possible with a $500,000 appropriation made by the Minnesota Legislature.
This grant marks a milestone in funding for Minnesota counties. Historically, the CAI position and associated work was mandated by the state but required to be funded by each county. Unfortunately, limited financial county resources often forced noxious weed management to be a lower priority. These grants will alleviate some of the financial burden on counties and encourage them to increase efforts of noxious weed work in their jurisdictions.
The following counties are receiving funding this year:
- Aitkin
- Becker
- Beltrami
- Benton
- Brown
- Carver
- Cass
- Clay
- Cook
- Cottonwood
- Dakota
- Dodge
- Douglas
- Grant
- Houston
- Kandiyohi
- Koochiching
- Le Sueur
- Lincoln
- Lyon
- Martin
- Mille Lacs
- Morrison
- Mower
- Murray
- Nicollet
- Norman
- Otter Tail
- Pennington
- Pipestone
- Pope
- Ramsey
- Renville
- Rice
- Rock
- Roseau
- Scott
- Sherburne
- Sibley
- Louis
- Steele
- Swift
- Todd
- Wadena
- Waseca
- Wright
- Yellow Medicine
