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CSFS: Natural refrigerants in retail food refrigeration and cold storage

Minnesota climate smart food systems (CSFS)

The MPCA is accepting applications for grants to reduce refrigerant emissions in retail food refrigeration, cold storage, and food assistance programs in Minnesota. Refrigeration projects must include replacing existing equipment to use a natural refrigerant such as, but not limited to, carbon dioxide (R-744), ammonia (R-717), and propane (R-290).

Funding will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis within each refrigeration sector. The RFP will remain open, and applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until all dedicated funds have been dispersed or until 4 p.m. Central Time on Thursday, May 27, 2027, whichever occurs first.

Eligibility

Eligible applicants must own and operate a refrigeration system in Minnesota: 

  • a for-profit business with up to 150 retail food refrigeration facilities company-wide, including parent companies and all business operations
  • a governmental entity, Tribe, non-profit, or non-profit educational institution with any number of employees with:
    • retail food refrigeration
    • cold storage 
  • a non-profit organization with any number of employees operating a food assistance program, such as a food shelf, food bank, or meals served on or off-site
  • a for-profit business with 500 full-time employees or fewer with cold storage; this may include cold storage businesses, who store food and beverages for third parties, as well as food producers and processors who need storage for their own products

Projects and refrigerants

Eligible projects include replacing existing, operational refrigeration systems at one facility holding, combined, more than 300 pounds of refrigerant at full charge.

  • examples of eligible existing equipment to replace include, but are not limited to: remote condensing units, centralized direct expansion systems, packaged systems, and central plants (direct systems)
  • the existing systems must be charged with refrigerant(s) with a global warming potential(s) > 1300
  • replacing remote condensing units and centralized direct expansion systems with air-cooled self-contained cases or micro-distributed systems is eligible

Not eligible: Replacing self-contained cases with self-contained cases. Self-contained or stand-alone refrigeration cases house all refrigeration components (e.g., evaporator, cooling coil, compressor, and condenser) within their structure. They are charged with refrigerant at the factory and typically only need to be plugged in to start operating. Refer to the RFP for the full list of ineligible projects.

Eligible replacement refrigerants are natural refrigerants, including but not limited to, carbon dioxide (R-744), ammonia (R-717), and propane (R-290). Examples of replacements that may be funded include but are not limited to: 

  • transcritical CO2 rack systems or remote condensing units with adiabatic condensers, ejectors, and/or other enhancements that improve performance 
  • cascade or secondary loop systems with CO2 or glycol as secondary heat transfer fluids 
  • propane: air or water-cooled cases
  • HVACR integrated systems that provide refrigeration as well as space heating and cooling using natural refrigerants

Available funds

Approximately $5 million is available in this funding window. 

  • Maximum award: The maximum grant award is either $500,000 or $750,000 and depends on organization and facility type, organization size, and location in a priority area. See Tables 1 and 2 in the RFP for maximum award amounts, application windows, and funding available per sector. 
  • All projects require a 50% cash match.

How to apply

Funding will be awarded on a first-come, first-served basis within each refrigeration sector. The RFP will remain open, and applications will be accepted on a rolling basis until all dedicated funds have been dispersed or until 4 p.m. Central Time on Thursday, May 27, 2027, whichever occurs first.

All applicants must submit a complete application which consists of the following documents:

Email applications to grants.pca@state.mn.us with the subject line: “Natural Refrigerants Larger Systems Application.”

Questions and answers

Applicants who have any questions regarding this RFP must email questions to grants.pca@state.mn.us, subject line: “Natural Refrigerants Larger Systems Question.” Answers to questions will be posted frequently on this web page. 

MPCA personnel are not authorized to discuss this RFP with applicants outside of the question-and-answer forum. Contact regarding this RFP with any MPCA personnel, outside of the forum, may result in disqualification.

Applicants should check the Natural refrigerants grant webpage for questions, answers, and addenda. 

Application assistance

The Minnesota Technical Assistance Program (MnTAP) is available for general assistance with your application. MnTAP help is free, and they can help you understand and locate eligible equipment and review your application for completeness. Contact Ashwin Nambudiripad, Associate Engineer, at ashwin@umn.edu or 612-624-4653.

Ultimately, you may need to work with a contractor to design a new system and get system characteristics, like refrigerant charge.

Technology resources

Learn more about options for natural refrigerants at the North American Sustainable Refrigeration Council’s Natural Refrigerant Webinar Series. On-demand webinar topics include: 

Need inspiration? See how food retailers upgraded their systems to use natural refrigerants: New York
Natural Refrigerant Demonstration Program - Supporting the transition to climate-friendly refrigerants in New York State

Search for contractors, design firms, and manufacturers that work with natural refrigerants:

Links are meant as a reference and do not constitute approval of any of the firms identified, nor is this a complete list of contractors. Grantees will be subject to state and federal bidding requirements as outlined in the grant agreement.

Background

Upgrading refrigeration systems to use climate friendly refrigerants can greatly reduce greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. Legacy hydrofluorocarbon refrigerants can have global warming potentials (GWP) thousands of times greater than carbon dioxide. Lower GWP alternatives are available now! 

More information

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded Minnesota $200 million to cut climate pollution from our state’s food systems through the federal Climate Pollution Reduction Grants program. Led by the MPCA in collaboration with other state agencies, local governments, and Tribal Nations, the climate-smart food systems initiative will distribute this investment through multiple programs through September 2029.