NIFA Update - Oct. 20, 2021

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Editor: Kelly Sprute                                                                                     October 20, 2021

Making a Difference

Field of wild Brassica carinata flowers, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

Field of wild Brassica carinata flowers, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

Plant-Based Jet Fuel Could Reduce Emissions by 68 Percent

After four years of searching, scientists have found a new plant-based aviation fuel that could significantly reduce the environmental impact of flying. The fuel is made from a type of mustard plant called Brassica carinata and could reduce carbon emissions by up to 68 percent, according to research from the University of Georgia (UGA).

The research, led by UGA scientist Puneet Dwivedi, shows that this sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) could be a “game-changer” in replacing petroleum. "Carinata-based SAF could help reduce the carbon footprint of the aviation sector while creating economic opportunities and improving the flow of ecosystem services across the southern region,” says Dwivedi. The Southeast Partnership for Advanced Renewables from Carinata, or SPARC, is a $15 million Bioenergy Coordinated Agricultural project funded by USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture. For more information read this UGA Today article.  

NIFA News

Farmer walking in a wheat field, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

NIFA Celebrates AgrAbility’s 30 Year Anniversary

For 30 years, AgrAbility, funded through USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture, has been making it possible for individuals with disabilities to work in their chosen profession of agriculture. While the majority of disabling injuries and illness are non-work related, disabling farming-related injuries happen often as agriculture ranks among the most hazardous of industries, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. For more information, read this NIFA blog.

Farmer walking in a wheat field, courtesy of Adobe Stock.


USDA’s Hispanic Heritage Month graphic.

Spotlight: NIFA’s CYFAR Program for Hispanic Heritage Month

In celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month, USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Children, Youth, and Families at Risk (CYFAR) Grant Program allocates funding provided by congressional appropriation to Land-grant University Cooperative Extension. To ensure that critical needs of at-risk youth and families are met, CYFAR supports comprehensive, intensive, community-based programs developed with active citizen participation. For more information, read this NIFA blog.

USDA’s Hispanic Heritage Month graphic.


NIFA flower identifier

NIFA Career Opportunities

We are hiring! The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) recruits a diverse group of talented, creative, motivated professionals who are invested in shaping the future of food and agricultural science. We offer a variety of benefits and services to our employees that focus on work-life balance, career enhancement, and health and well-being. NIFA has career opportunities in a variety of scientific disciplines covering engineering, food science, forestry, education, animal and crop sciences, and many other agriculture-related disciplines. NIFA job openings are listed on USAJobs. Current NIFA job openings are for Kansas City, Missouri, or location negotiable after selection.

Supervisory Grants Management Specialist (GS-14)
Closing Date: October 21, or when we have received 100 applications.
View the job announcement.

Financial Officer (GS-15)
Closing Date: October 21, or when we have received 75 applications.
View the job announcement.

Reimbursable Coordinator (GS 12-13)
Closing Date: October 25.
View the job announcement.

USDA Messages

Sustainable environment graphic, courtesy of Getty Images.

USDA Seeks Public Input on New Climate-Smart Agriculture and Forestry Partnership Initiative

USDA is committed to partnering with farmers, ranchers, forest landowners, and communities to develop climate solutions that strengthen rural America. The Department is currently accepting public comments on a new climate partnership initiative to create market opportunities for commodities produced using climate-smart practices.

USDA will support a set of pilot projects that provide incentives to implement climate-smart conservation practices on working lands and to quantify and monitor the carbon and greenhouse gas benefits associated with those practices. Stakeholders interested in providing comments may do so on or before 11:59 p.m. EST on November 1, via the Federal Register, Docket ID: USDA-2021-0010. Go online to learn more or to submit your comments. 

Sustainable environment graphic, courtesy of Getty Images.


Pile of wooden boards in the sawmill, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

USDA Now Accepting Grant Applications for Wood Products, Energy

Deputy Agriculture Secretary Dr. Jewel Bronaugh recently announced $13 million in new funding opportunities to support market innovation in wood products and wood energy. The USDA Forest Service is now accepting applications for these funds through the 2022 Wood Innovations Grant Program and the 2022 Community Wood Grant Program. These grants are designed to develop and expand the use of wood products and strengthen emerging wood energy markets that support sustainable forest management – particularly in areas of high wildfire risk. For more information, read the USDA press release.

Pile of wooden boards in a sawmill, courtesy of Adobe Stock.


A hemp farm field, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

An Old Crop is Making New History

Hemp is an old crop with a lot of old history, but it's writing some new history right now. USDA’s Gary Crawford talks with USDA history researcher, Anne Effland how hemp is making a comeback in U.S. farms. For more information, listen to this USDA broadcast.

A hemp farm field, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

News for You

Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education graphic

Northeast SARE Now Accepting Farmer Grant Proposals

Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) invites farmers and growers in our region to submit proposals to the Farmer Grant Program. Proposals are due online by 5 p.m. on November 16 for projects starting next spring. Funded projects, which are now capped at $30,000, will be announced in late February 2022. Farmer Grants are intended for farmers and growers who want to explore new concepts in sustainable agriculture through experiments, surveys, prototypes, on-farm demonstrations, or other research and education techniques. Go online for more information, or to apply.


Holstein dairy cows, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

USDA Grant to Fund Algae Dairy Feed Research  

The USDA announced a third round of National Institute of Food and Agriculture’s Sustainable Agricultural Systems program grants. The $146 million outlay will fund 15 projects aimed at ag sustainability, climate change, food production and nutrition. One project is specifically targeting dairy. A $10 million project, conducted in partnership with Colby College, Waterville, Maine, will research algae feed additives for dairy cows, assessing the impact at the animal-, farm- and community-level. The project will include developing integrated public outreach programs to enhance milk production, mitigate greenhouse gas emissions and recover nutrients. For more information, read this Colby College news article.

Holstein dairy cows, courtesy of Adobe Stock.


Food quality inspector, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

Grant to Establish Food Safety Concentration at Stan State  

Stanislaus State has received a $275,000 three-year grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to establish a new undergraduate concentration in food safety, a vital need in the California’s agricultural industries. The USDA announced on Friday that Stanislaus State is among 21 universities to receive a National Institute of Food and Agriculture Hispanic-Serving Institutions Education Grant for the University’s Career Ready Ag Food Safety program, which will facilitate the planning and implementation of a food safety program as a curriculum concentration. For more information, read this Stanislaus State news article.

Food quality inspector, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

Award Notification

NIFA Invests $2M for Aquaculture Research

NIFA recently invested $2 million for seven awards for the Special Research Grants Program for Aquaculture to support the development of new science-based information and technology for environmentally and economically sustainable aquaculture industry in the United States. The Special Research Grants Program for Aquaculture is authorized by the Competitive Special and Facilities Research Grants Act to develop practical solutions that will facilitate growth of the U.S. aquaculture industry, reduce the U.S. trade deficit in seafood products, and enhance the capacity of the U.S aquaculture industry to contribute to food security and economic growth.

Funding Opportunity

Artificial Intelligence (AI) Research Institutes

Image AI photo illustration courtesy of Adobe Stock.

Image AI photo illustration, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has advanced tremendously and today promises personalized healthcare; enhanced national security; improved transportation; more effective education, and precision agriculture. Development of AI technologies has the potential to improve commerce, manufacturing, logistics, medicine, and agriculture, so USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), the National Science Foundation and other partner agencies are jointly sponsoring the AI Institutes program. Advancing and deploying new approaches and applications of AI is a natural extension to agricultural production and food security. There are numerous opportunities to apply transformative, user-inclusive data-driven research methods and algorithm development to the food and agricultural sector to yield meaningful insights, predictive tools, and real-time solutions for production; food processing; transportation and storage; wholesale and retail marketing; and high-quality products and information for consumers. AI Research Institutes that simultaneously advance foundational AI research and agriculture and food systems might build new multidisciplinary communities and create the workforce needed for an AI-powered revolution in agriculture. Deadline to apply is May 13, 2022. For more information, read the AI Research Institutes funding opportunity announcement.


Agriculture Business Innovation Center at an HBCU Institution

Image of hand over wheat courtesy of Adobe Stock.

Image of hand over wheat, courtesy of Adobe Stock.

An Agriculture Business Innovation Center at an Historically Black College or University (HBCU) facilitates administration, coordination, and management of multidisciplinary and multi-institutional, teaching, outreach, and integrated projects within the scope of agriculture and business. (Note: HBCU Agriculture Business Innovation Center refers to an administrative unit, not a brick-and- mortar facility.) The center serves as a focal point to assess regional and national needs in agriculture business and establish priorities for collaborative projects. Funding appropriated for this program may be used by a HBCU, or collaborative group led by an HBCU, to serve as a technical assistance hub to enhance agriculture-based business development opportunities. Application deadline: January 13, 2022. For more information, read the HBCU Agriculture Business Innovation Center funding opportunity.

Tweet of the Week

University of Connecticut Extension's Unpeeled game aims to increase consumer awareness. NIFA funded.