Entering the Heart of Juneteenth
The origin of the Juneteenth holiday might be unfamiliar to many in other parts of America, but those students, faculty, researchers and Extension staff from the 1890 Land-grant University community know it well, as many are beneficiaries of the educational opportunities that ensued at the 19 institutions in the southern region.
Juneteenth National Independence Day graphic, courtesy of NIFA.
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Pollination—Day or Night
Everyone needs pollinators. They are a critical part of the production team that ensures we have food on our dinner tables. People consider bees of all types as the quintessential pollinators — busy all day visiting flowering fruits and vegetable plants. But bees are just one part of the vast pollination workforce tending the nation’s fields and orchards. Pollinators include a wide variety of other insects and animals — such as bees, wasps, moths, flies, butterflies, birds, and even bats.
National Pollinator Week graphic, courtesy of NIFA.
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School’s Out for Summer
It’s the first day of summer and, through NIFA, 4-H and youth development programs across the nation are providing youth with the opportunity to stay busy and learn while away from school.
First Day of Summer graphic, courtesy of NIFA.
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Solicitation of Veterinary Shortage Situation Nominations for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program
NIFA is soliciting nominations of veterinary service shortage situations for the Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program for fiscal years (FY) 2023-2025, as authorized under the National Veterinary Medical Services Act. This notice initiates the nomination period for FY 2023 and prescribes the procedures and criteria to be used by eligible nominating officials (state, insular areas, Washington, D.C. and federal lands) to nominate veterinary shortage situations for fiscal years 2023-2025. Each year all eligible nominating officials may submit nominations, up to the maximum indicated for each entity in this notice. NIFA is conducting this solicitation of veterinary shortage situation nominations under an approved information collection (OMB Control Number 0524-0050).
A veterinarian evaluates a cow. Photo courtesy of Adobe Stock.
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NIFA Career Opportunities
We are hiring! 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.gov. Current NIFA job openings are for Kansas City, Missouri, or a location negotiable after selection, unless otherwise noted below.
Associate Director for Operations (ES-00)
Closing Date: June 23
View the job announcement.
Career Opportunities graphic, courtesy of NIFA.
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USDA Announces Assistance for On-Farm Food Safety Expenses for Specialty Crop Growers
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack has announced that USDA plans to provide up to $200 million in assistance for specialty crop producers who incur eligible on-farm food safety program expenses to obtain or renew a food safety certification in calendar years 2022 or 2023. USDA’s new Food Safety Certification for Specialty Crops program will help to offset costs for specialty crop producers to comply with regulatory requirements and market-driven food safety certification requirements, which is part of USDA’s broader effort to transform the food system to create a more level playing field for small and medium producers and a more balanced, equitable economy for everyone working in food and agriculture.
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Shorter, Wider Flowers May Transmit More Parasites to Bees
With support from NIFA, North Carolina State University researchers show that the shape of flowers has the biggest effect on how parasites are transmitted to bees, an important consideration for declining populations of our prodigious pollinators. The findings could help stakeholders plant flowers that are less likely to spread parasites in pollinator habitats.
Parasite spread is an important factor in bee health. A new study suggests that the shape of flowers has a big effect on parasite transmission to eastern bumble bees.
Photo courtesy of Mario Simon Pinilla-Gallego, NC State University.
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STLMade Spotlights UMSL-Led Research on Pollination in Urban Orchards
Aimee Dunlap, an associate professor of biology at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, has been directing a project studying pollination in urban and suburban orchards with colleagues at six institutions across the St. Louis region since last fall. STLMade, an initiative of Greater St. Louis Inc., spotlighting notable and innovative work being done in the region, featured the collaboration in a feature story and video headlined ”Hive Mind“ on its website last week. It was the first installment of a two-part series about the project. The research dives into the role of bees in pollination with the goal of maximizing fruit production while supporting biodiversity, and it’s supported by a $633,000 grant from NIFA.
Associate Professor Aimee Dunlap has been working with researchers from six institutions around the St. Louis region to study pollination in urban orchards.
Photo courtesy of the University of Missouri-St. Louis.
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Monarch Butterfly Populations are Thriving in North America
For years, scientists have warned that monarch butterflies are dying off in droves because of diminishing winter colonies. But new research from the University of Georgia shows that the summer population of monarchs has remained relatively stable over the past 25 years. Published in Global Change Biology, the NIFA-funded study suggests that population growth during the summer compensates for butterfly losses due to migration, winter weather and changing environmental factors.
A monarch butterfly rests on a leaf.
Photo courtesy of Pat Davis and the University of Georgia.
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June 24: NIFA/APHIS Program Priorities Informational Webinar
NIFA is inviting the public to join an informational webinar at 2:30 p.m. CDT on Friday, June 24 to discuss augmented program area priorities for the following Agriculture and Food Research Initiative programs: Agricultural Biosecurity, Diseases of Agricultural Animals, Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases, and Interdisciplinary Engagement in Animal Systems. NIFA and the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) have recently agreed to collaborate in these programs, enabling APHIS to provide funding support for research projects in line with APHIS priorities surrounding SARS-CoV-2. Read more information and register for the webinar on the NIFA website.
Webinar graphic, courtesy of NIFA.
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NIFA Invests Nearly $4M in the Physiology of Agricultural Plants
NIFA has invested nearly $4 million in eight projects as part of the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Physiology of Agricultural Plants Program, which advances research to improve plant production that is critical to the sustainability and competitiveness of U.S. agriculture. Future improvements to production systems require a better understanding of inter-related factors affecting agricultural plants and their nutritional quality, water-and nutrient-use efficiency, and resilience to climate variability. The Physiology of Agricultural Plants Program supports research that addresses these needs at the molecular, cellular, biochemical, and whole-organism levels. Awardees: Cornell University, Ithaca, New York ($648,068); Iowa State University of Science and Technology, Ames, Iowa ($225,000); Michigan Technological University, Houghton, Michigan ($649,847); Oklahoma State University, Ardmore, Oklahoma ($649,997); Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania ($20,000); Pennsylvania State University, ($650,000); Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana ($650,000); and University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho ($299,432).
NIFA Invests $3.4M in Foundational Knowledge of Plant Products
NIFA has invested $3.4 million in seven projects as part of the AFRI Foundational Knowledge of Plant Products Program. The program supports projects to study the synthesis of plant-derived, high-value chemicals and ingredients for use in foods, pharmaceuticals, and other natural products. The intent of this program is for results to be translated into development of varieties that help create or meet emerging and future markets and contribute towards long-term demand for new agriculturally based industrial and food products. Awardees: University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona ($225,000); University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut ($600,000); Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia ($649,000); Washington State University, Pullman, Washington ($650,000); Cornell University, Ithaca, New York ($649,000); West Virginia State University, Institute, West Virginia ($650,000); and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, Virginia ($33,520).
NIFA Invests Nearly $3M in Foundational Knowledge of Ag Production Systems
NIFA has invested nearly $3 million in four projects as part of the AFRI Foundational Knowledge of Ag Production Systems Program. This program supports plant research to advance our knowledge for the wide range of agricultural production systems found across the rural-urban continuum, from conventional open-fields to protected built environments. Awardees: Clemson University-Clemson, South Carolina ($649,898); Ohio State University-Columbus, Ohio ($750,000); University of Illinois-Champaign, Illinois ($749,962); and Agricultural Research Service-Stoneville, Mississippi ($649,683)
NIFA Invests $500K in Conventional Plant Breeding for Cultivar Development
NIFA has invested $500K in a project at Montana State University as part of the AFRI Conventional Plant Breeding for Cultivar Development Program. This program fund critical research leading to the release of improved crop varieties. The new crop varieties have better productivity, quality and tolerance to environmental variability. AFRI support for breeding includes fundamental research on applied quantitative genetics, genetic engineering, modelling and artificial intelligence for breeding purposes. Research to develop improved crop varieties helps to protect the livelihoods of farmers, conserve natural resources, and provide safe and abundant sources of food, fuel and fiber.
Morning Ag Clips: USDA Strengthens Partnerships with 1890s Universities
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Dr. Paul Jones, Chair of the Council of 1890s Officers — an organization comprised of presidents and chancellors of historically Black colleges and universities — signed a Memorandum of Understanding to reaffirm and strengthen the ongoing relationship between the 1890s community and USDA through cooperation and partnership. The Secretary and Chairman Jones were joined by USDA Deputy Secretary Jewel Bronaugh and Research, Education and Economics Under Secretary Chavonda Jacobs-Young.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack and Dr. Paul Jones, sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the Council of 1890s Officers at the W Hotel in Washington, D.C. on June 14. USDA photo by Tom Witham.
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The U.S. is the top producer of hybrid striped bass. A Texas A&M AgriLife team is working to improve the fishes’ health, growth, and productivity by developing effective nutritional strategies to substitute fishmeal and other protein feedstuffs in farmed bass diets.
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It was a great day to be in Kansas City talking about impact writing! Thank you to the Land-grant University communicators who attended the NIFA Impact Training Workshop hosted by the NIFA communications staff.
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