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Making a Difference
Move to Pork Production Allowing More Farmers to Bring Home the Bacon
Moving from one operation to another is a leap of faith for farmers. But a group of North Carolina farmers say if the move is done with care and under guidance, changing a farm’s main commodity offers both financial and experiential rewards.
During the last two years, two groups of North Carolina farmers have taken that leap, transitioning from producing tobacco and other crops to producing pork and pork products, with the help of North Carolina A&T (N.C. A&T) Cooperative Extension’s “From Bright Leaf to Berkshires” program. Read more about how N.C. A&T is guiding farmers toward improved profitability.
Round table discussion with program graduates. Image courtesy of N.C. A&T.
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 DARPA Looking for Innovative Ideas to Protect Agriculture
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA) Biological Technologies Office (BTO) is looking for innovative ideas to develop novel capabilities to defend agriculture against both naturally occurring and manmade threats.
Areas of interest include:
- Advances to early warning systems for chemical and biological threat surveillance and detection.
- Rapid-response agricultural countermeasures to defend against threats.
- Massively accelerated and expanded crop engineering for long-term threat defeat.
- Integrated and comprehensive threat prediction and modeling for our agricultural systems.
- Novel methods to assess the occurrence of human intervention and to attribute provenance.
BTO encourages participation by new or non-traditional submitters. Learn more about this effort and how to apply. Deadline for submissions is Aug. 31.
Technical Assistance Webinar: FY 2025 SBIR/STTR Programs Phase II Request for Applications
NIFA will hold a Technical Assistance Webinar from 1:30 to 3 p.m. EDT Thursday, Aug. 14, for those interested in the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) grant programs. These programs offer 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.
In this webinar, program staff provide an overview of Phase II and discuss details included in the FY 2025 Request for Applications (RFA). To register, visit the event details page.
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Wisconsin Researchers Develop Promotional Resources for Farmers Market Operators
National survey results reveal majority of Americans shop at a farmers market at least once a year and about 41% shop farmers markets more than six times a year. The University of Wisconsin study emphasizes the need for continued support and promotion of farmers markets. Based on their work, the team developed a new resource for farmers market operators to aid them in their promotional efforts. The Social Media Ad Project Guide provides a summary of survey findings, the outcomes of social media ad testing, and recommendations for social media marketing of farmers markets. Read more about this NIFA supported work.
Farmers market shoppers brave the rainy weather to get fresh produce. USDA photo.
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New Durum Variety Creates Exciting Opportunities for U.S. Farmers
USDA’s Agricultural Research Service released a new variety of durum wheat with a novel commercial appeal that opens new markets for U.S. farmers. The new variety not only grows well in harsh environments typical of durum wheat but also features novel end-use traits that allow it to be milled conventionally, producing flour instead of the more coarse semolina. Read more about the new variety and the research behind it.
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AgriProspects Mini-grants Applications Open
AgriProspects, an Extension Foundation program, has announced their second round of grants aimed at advancing Extension-led adult agricultural workforce development.
Supported by NIFA, AgriProspects will award grants to support regional or national-scale projects that build Cooperative Extension’s capacity and readiness in digital credentialing and artificial intelligence tools and resources.
Applications are due Aug. 31. Learn more about the program and how to apply.
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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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