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Making a Difference
Washington State ARPTAI Cooperator Empowering New Farmers
As Washington State farm numbers continue to decline, local nonprofit organizations are investing in the future by developing the next generation of farmers in the state. Supported by USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) with funding from the American Rescue Plan Technical Assistance Investment program (ARPTAI), Viva Farms, a nonprofit farm business incubator, has been helping farmers start businesses by offering bilingual organic farming training as well as access to land and other essentials needed to launch a viable business.
Farias Farm, a family-owned organic farm in the Skagit Valley, stands as one of Viva Farms’ recent successes. Through a creative lease with option to purchase, an agricultural impact investment firm financed a venture where Farias Farms will take over ownership of a 10-acre organic farm. Farm owners Francisco Farias and Lorena Reza will assume full ownership in several years.
Learn more about Farias Farm and the farm business incubator that has set the Farias family on the road to farm ownership.
Washington State farmer Francisco Farias. Image courtesy of Viva Farms.
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Stakeholders Affected by Hurricane Helene Encouraged to Contact NIFA Staff
NIFA asks any stakeholders affected by Hurricane Helene to reach out to agency staff if your ability to meet a NIFA deadline is impacted. Deadlines may include items such as program reports, award management items and RFA submissions.
Reach out to NIFA program contacts at your earliest possible convenience to let them know about your specific situation so they can provide support and guidance.
NIFA Resources
- NIFA’s Extension Disaster Education Network (EDEN) is a collaborative national effort by Extension services across the country to improve the delivery of services to people affected by disasters. EDEN’s mission is to reduce the impact of disasters through research-based Extension education. Additionally, EDEN ensures that Extension can respond to local, state, regional, national and international education needs during a crisis.
- The Rapid Response to Extreme Weather Events Across Food and Agricultural Systems program is designed to rapidly deploy strategies and fill knowledge and information gaps to protect the nation’s food and agricultural supply chains, from production through consumption, during and after extreme weather and disasters.
Food Loss and Waste Liaison Moves to NIFA
The USDA Food Loss and Waste (FLW) program has a new home in the Research, Education and Economics mission area under USDA NIFA.
The FLW program, formerly with the USDA Office of the Chief Economist, joins NIFA’s Institute of Food Safety and Nutrition’s program portfolio. USDA is in a unique position to help address the problems of FLW across the nation, including harmful impacts on climate heating and resources wasted throughout the food supply, from farm to fork.
Read more about the work of the FLW program and its liaison.
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NIFA Director Visits University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
NIFA Director Dr. Manjit Misra visited the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign recently. As part of his visit, he met with university leadership, including Dr.Germán Bollero, Dean, College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, faculty and researchers. Additionally, Dr. Misra joined a number of undergraduate students for lunch, learning about their college experiences and sharing the opportunities for students at both NIFA and USDA. He also visited with NIFA-supported researchers in their labs and heard more about the progress of their grant projects.
Above: NIFA Director Dr. Manjit Misra talking with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researcher. Below: Dr. Misra with University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign undergraduates.
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NIFA Invests $8 Million to Spur Small Business-Led Innovation (SBIR/STTR Phase I, Round 2)
USDA NIFA has announced an investment of $8 million to support 46 projects as part of NIFA’s Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs. These programs provide competitively awarded grants to qualified small businesses to support high quality research related to important scientific problems and opportunities in agriculture that could lead to significant public benefits.
The program is designed to fund early or "seed" stage research and development that has a commercial potential, providing equity-free funding and entrepreneurial support at the earliest stages of company and technology development.
Additional Award Announcements
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Oct. 3, Noon 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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Nov. 14, Noon EST: NIFA Reporting Activities: Differences Between Capacity and Competitive Awards
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Nov. 14, 3 p.m. EST: Live FAQ Session: Rapid Response to Extreme Weather Events Across Food and Agriculture Systems
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Nov. 21, 4 p.m. EST: 2025 National 4-H Conference Information Session
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Dec. 11, 1 p.m. EST: Reviewing and Evaluating Transdisciplinary and Engaged Research Projects: Perspectives from Funding Programs
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Research Aims to Improve Wine Production, Quality Nationwide
With 85% of wine production taking place in California, what happens when drier growing seasons and increased threats of wildfires impact the state’s ability to continue that high production level?
Aude Watrelot, assistant professor of food science and human nutrition and Extension enology specialist at Iowa State University, is leading a project to better understand the challenges faced by wine industry professionals across the U.S. The results of the project aim to improve future regional wine production.
The challenge with grape and wine production in the Midwest and Northeastern U.S. is that cold-hardy grape varieties grown in these regions have a different flavor profile and acidity that consumers are not used to. Through this project, Watrelot and the other researchers hope to discover ways grape growers and wine producers can adjust their wines to meet consumer expectations – and help consumers better appreciate wines.
Read more about this NIFA-supported project, which included researchers from eight states.
Iowa State University researchers are working to better understand challenges faced by wine industry. Image courtesy of Iowa State University.
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USDA and FFAR Announce Innovation Challenge Projects Aimed at Catalyzing Transformative Research Solutions
USDA, in partnership with the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR), has announced the three projects recommended for funding through the “Nourishing Next Generation Agrifood Breakthroughs” (Innovation Challenge).
This $1.15 million funding investment is part of USDA’s Innovation Challenge that is designed to spark high-risk, high-reward research through innovations at the intersection of nutrition security, equity and justice, and climate smart agriculture. Learn more about the Innovation Challenge and the funded projects.
U.S. Global Change Research Program Seeks Public Comment on First National Nature Assessment
The U.S. Global Change Research Program is requesting public feedback on the proposed themes and topics of the first National Nature Assessment, a report aimed at assessing the condition of nature as an aspect of global change. The input received, due Nov. 4, will guide chapter author teams in developing their draft chapters. Read the Federal Register notice for more information.
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 USDA Seeks Nominations for Greenhouse Gas Technical Assistance Provider and Third-Party Verifier Program Advisory Council
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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