The mission of the Rural Business-Cooperative Service (RBS) of USDA Rural Development is to enhance the quality of life for rural Americans by building competitive businesses and cooperatives that can prosper in the global marketplace.

Commercial Lending-- Business and Industry Loan Guarantee
The Business and Industry Guarantee Loan Program helps create jobs and stimulates rural economies by providing financial backing for rural businesses. Most businesses located in rural areas are eligible, including tourism, recreation (except golf courses and race tracks), amusement, and hotels. Charitable, educational or religious organizations are not eligible, and farming is not eligible unless it is part of a larger business that is also processing agricultural products. Farmers can apply for loan guarantees to purchase stock in a new cooperative that will be processing their crop.

Rural Business Opportunity Grants
Rural Business Opportunity Grants (RBOG) are available to promote sustainable economic development in rural communities with exceptional need. Grants will be used to provide technical assistance for business development and economic development planning.

Rural Business Enterprise Grants
Rural communities can receive assistance in promoting the development of small businesses through the Rural Business Enterprise Grant (RBEG) program. Grants are made to public bodies or not-for-profit organizations. Grantees use the funds to promote the development of small private businesses, which are defined as having 50 or fewer new employees and less than $1 million in projected annual gross revenue.

Cooperative Development
The overall goal of Cooperative Services is to provide a realistic view of what it will take to make a new cooperative succeed.  Cooperative Services' professional staff provides technical assistance, research, statistics, education, and information to agricultural cooperatives and to groups planning to form a cooperative type of organization. Cooperative Services also provides technical assistance to existing cooperatives facing problems or challenges.  Technical assistance could include helping a cooperative develop a strategic marketing plan, making a crucial decision about merging or forming a joint venture with other cooperatives, or improving its business structure and operating efficiency.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Marketing Service administers programs that facilitate the efficient, fair marketing of U.S. agricultural Products, including food, fiber, and specialty crops.  AMS programs promote a strategic marketing perspective that adapts product and marketing practices and technologies to the issues of today and the challenges of tomorrow.