Dear Colleagues,
NIFA has announced $182 million in funding for Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Foundational and Applied Science Program.
The Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) is America's flagship competitive grants program that provides funding for fundamental and applied research, education, and extension projects in the food and agricultural sciences. The purpose of AFRI is to support research, education, and extension work by awarding grants to solve key problems of local, regional, national, and global importance in sustaining conventional, organic, and urban agricultural systems. These include farm efficiency, profitability and sustainability, ranching, bioenergy, forestry, aquaculture, rural communities and entrepreneurship, human nutrition, mitigating impacts of biotic and abiotic constraints on food production, food safety, mitigating food waste and food loss, physical and social sciences, home economics and rural human ecology, biotechnology, and classical breeding.
The goal of this program is to invest in agricultural production research, education, and extension projects for more sustainable, productive and economically viable plant and animal production systems. Through this support, AFRI advances knowledge in both fundamental and applied sciences important to agriculture. It also allows AFRI to support education and extension activities that deliver science-based knowledge to end users, allowing them to make informed, practical decisions.
AFRI program descriptions are as follows:
- Plant health and production and plant products
- Animal health and production and animal products
- Food safety, nutrition, and health
- Bioenergy, natural resources, and environment
- Agriculture systems and technology
- Agriculture economics and rural communities
- Crosscutting programs
- Critical agricultural research and extension; and
- Exploratory research
For FY 18, there is a new Plant Health and Production and Plant Products program area priority: Agricultural Microbiomes in Plant Systems and Natural Resources (Code: A1402). This program area priority is focused on understanding the multipartite interactions among the host, environment, and the microbiome; thereby providing information critical for improving and sustaining agricultural productivity and quality in plant systems and associated natural resources. Plant productivity includes biotic factors affecting plant health such as pests, diseases or vectors as well as abiotic factors (water, soil health), etc. Research supported by this program area priority will help fill major knowledge gaps in characterizing agricultural microbiomes and microbiome functions across agricultural production systems and natural resources through cross-cutting projects.
Microbiomes have profound impacts on agricultural production systems as well as human, animal, plant, and environmental health. Microbiome research is critical for improving agricultural productivity, sustainability of agricultural ecosystems, safety of the food supply and meeting the challenge of feeding a rapidly growing world population. Better understanding of microbiomes will help reduce the use of chemicals (pesticides, antibiotics, and biocides) in food production, lead to the development of safer alternatives for the management of agriculturally-important pests and diseases, optimize nutrient utilization efficiency, and reduce environmental footprints. Understanding the multipartite interactions among the host, environment, and the microbiome is critical for improving and sustaining agricultural productivity and quality in plant systems and associated natural resources. Plant productivity includes biotic factors affecting plant health such as either pests, diseases or vectors as well as abiotic factors (water, soil health), etc. Research supported by this program area priority will help fill major knowledge gaps in characterizing agricultural microbiomes and microbiome functions across agricultural production systems, and natural resources through cross-cutting projects. This research will capitalize on the convergence of low-cost sequencing and “omics” technologies, manipulation of microbiome composition and of phage and microbial genes (transposons, integrons), genome editing tools, and other novel tools for studying microbiota's structure and function.
The program requires a Letter of Intent, due July 18, 2018, after which applications are due September 26, 2018. The program is soliciting Standard Grants, Strengthening Standard Grants, and New Investigator Grants of up to $750,000 total per project for project periods of up to four years.
Learn more about the Agricultural Microbiomes in Plant Systems and Natural Resources at a webinar scheduled for Friday, June 22, from 11:00 am to 12:00 pm PST.
Webinar Link: https://nifa-usda.webex.com/nifa-usda/j.php?MTID=m18746fd3f1995fb9027ce8807925e4ec (link is external)
Meeting number: 964853991
Join by phone
Call-in toll-free number (ATT Audio Conference): 1-888-844-9904 (US)
Access Code: 4629822
If you have questions regarding Program Area Priority Code A1402, contact either Rachel Melnick, National Program Leader, Institute of Bioenergy, Climate, and Environment at rmelnick@nifa.usda.gov, OR Ann Lichens-Park, National Program Leader, Division of Plant Systems-Protection at apark@nifa.usda.gov.
Thank you.
Kathleen Nolan, Director, ANR Office of Contracts & Grants (OCG)