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Making a Difference
HSIs Strengthening the Nation’s Workforce
According to the 2022 Census of Agriculture, there were 112,379 Hispanic agricultural producers in the U.S. The 2022 census showed Hispanic producers were younger on average than U.S. producers overall and more likely to be a beginning farmer.
To support minority-serving colleges and universities, USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) provides grants to Hispanic-serving Institutions (HSI). The primary objective is to attract exceptional students and foster the development of graduates who can actively contribute to the nation's food and agricultural scientific and professional workforce. Learn more about the work being done at two Hispanic-serving Institutions supported by NIFA funds.
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Response and Readiness for Hawaiian Communities
Disasters can strike any time, often without notice or warning. Last year, more than 56,000 wildfires across the U.S. devastated 2.6 million acres, including the catastrophic Maui wildfires. With the support of USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), efforts are moving ahead to enhance preparedness and mitigation on Maui.
Read how support from NIFA’s Rapid Response to Extreme Weather Events program is strengthening preparedness capacity and mitigating risk.
Rapid Response project is restoring native landscapes.
Image courtesy of University of Hawai’i Maui College.
Public Listening Session on Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A Research Priorities
To inform the U.S. readiness and response to the ongoing Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza A (H5N1) outbreak, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine will host a virtual public listening session on Sept. 23 from noon to 5 p.m. EDT. The public session will feature perspectives from stakeholders on potential research priorities for the virus. Register here for the listening session event.
International Year of the Woman Farmer Initiative - Call to Action
The United Nations General Assembly has designated 2026 as the International Year of the Woman Farmer (IYWF). IYWF is a U. S.-sponsored initiative which aims to highlight actions that can help close the gender gap and move the world closer to achieving food security, gender equality, and the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals.
USDA is leading the U.S. government effort to address ways to contribute to greater food security through enhancing opportunities for women farmers. Learn more at the USDA IYWF web page.
If you or your institutions would like to partner with USDA on this initiative, email IYWF2026@usda.gov with your area of interest from the list below or other ways that would work best for your organization.
Ideas for Participation
- Participating as a speaker on a panel
- Becoming a mentor
- Sharing your experience as a leader in agriculture
- Highlighting the IYWF in your events
- Developing and/or sharing ag technologies to combat climate change
- Doing research and/or data collection on the various IYWF Call to Action themes
- Hosting an IYWF website
- Highlighting IYWF and/or women farmers, ag economists, ag scientists, etc. in social media
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NIFA Invests $ 11.6 Million in Research and Extension Experiences for Undergraduates
USDA NIFA has announced an investment of $11.6 million to 17 projects for Research and Extension Experiences for Undergraduates (REEU). The REEU program area priority promotes research and Extension learning experiences for undergraduates so that after graduation they can enter the agricultural workforce with exceptional skills. This initiative allows colleges and universities to provide opportunities for undergraduate students, including those from underrepresented and economically disadvantaged groups, minority-serving institutions, community colleges, and universities.
Additional Award Announcements
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Sept. 23, 2 p.m. EDT: Technical Assistance: Community Food Projects Competitive Grant Program RFA
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Sept. 24, 1:30 p.m. EDT: Food /Nutrition Security: Rapid Response During Extreme Weather Events
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Sept. 27, 2 p.m. EDT: Technical Assistance: Food & Agricultural Non-Formal Education RFA
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Oct. 1, 3:30 p.m. EDT: Technical Assistance Webinar: Specialty Crop Research Initiative Request for Pre-Applications
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Oct. 2, 12 p.m. EDT: USDA Actions on Reducing Food Loss and Waste
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Oct. 3, 12 p.m. EDT: Post-Award Management for Competitive Grants
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Oct. 3, 5 p.m. EDT: Children, Youth and Families At Risk (CYFAR) Listening Session #1
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Oct. 4, 3 p.m. EDT: Children, Youth and Families At Risk (CYFAR) Listening Session #2
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Oct. 22, 3 p.m. EDT: Addressing Critical Shortages in Nutrition Professionals
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Finding Frost-tolerant Blueberries for Alabama Growers
Alabama blueberry farmers could soon start growing more frost-tolerant cultivars thanks to a NIFA-supported Agriculture and Food Research Initiative project at Auburn University. Most Alabama growers are still heavily relying on the native species rabbiteye, while producers in neighboring states such as Florida, Georgia and North Carolina have switched to southern highbush blueberries for earlier maturity and superior qualities such as larger berries, fewer seeds, thinner skin and often longer shelf life and better taste.
Sushan Ru, an Auburn University assistant professor of horticulture, tested newly developed advanced selections of highbush blueberries to identify cultivars that could offer consumer-preferred quality traits while blooming later in the season and avoiding frost damage.
The study included 53 cultivars and advanced selections, most of which are new to Alabama, and her findings have produced some clear stars. Read more about this Ru’s research and the benefit it offers the state’s blueberry producers.
Ripe blueberries on bush. Image courtesy of Adobe Stock.
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USDA Seeks Nominations
USDA is accepting nominations for the Greenhouse Gas Technical Assistance Provider and Third-Party Verifier Program Advisory Council. The council supports the program in facilitating the participation in voluntary environmental credit markets of farmers, ranchers, and private forest landowners.
Nominations must be postmarked on or before Oct. 15. Read the Federal Register notice for more information.
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The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is committed to ensuring that its programs and services are accessible to all individuals, including individuals with disabilities and individuals with limited English proficiency. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in any NIFA event, please contact the appropriate Program staff no later than 10 days prior to the event. To find Program staff by event, please visit the NIFA Calendar of Events. NIFA Language access services, such as interpretation or translation of vital information, will be provided free of charge to limited English proficient individuals upon request. If you need interpretation or translation services please visit NIFA language services or contact Lois Tuttle, Equal Opportunity Specialist, at Lois.Tuttle@usda.gov or (443) 386-9488 no later than 10 days prior to the event.
NIFA’s mission is to invest in and advance agricultural research, education, and Extension that solves societal challenges. NIFA’s investments in transformative science directly support the long-term prosperity and global preeminence of U.S. agriculture. Keep informed about NIFA, USDA, our Land-grant and non-Land-grant university partners, and stakeholders with the NIFA Update. Read past issues online, sign up for email updates or follow us on X (formerly Twitter) @USDA_NIFA, #NIFAImpacts or LinkedIn @usda-nifa.
If you wish to submit a news item or information, send an email to NIFAUpdate.
USDA is an equal opportunity lender, provider, and employer.
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