Story Bank

• Kansas
• Microbiomes
• Pests & Diseases

Charcoal rot is a soilborne disease caused by a fungus (Macrophomina phaseolina) that results in significant crop losses. At Kansas State University, a team of researchers quantified the...

• Iowa
• Food Safety
• Human Health & Nutrition

Dr. Mellata and her team’s project focuses on improving food safety by reducing harmful bacteria in poultry products. Its major goals are: 1) advance our understanding of the zoonotic...

• California
• Animal Sciences
• Genomics

Instead of surgically castrating young boars, researchers at the University of California, Davis and Washington State University are developing a practical and humane way to remove “boar...

• Michigan
• Transdisciplinary Research

Because pollinators are critical for the production of most berry crops, Dr. Isaacs and his transdisciplinary team investigate pollinator ecology and management, economic value, and...

• New York
• Plant Sciences
• Human Health & Nutrition

Broccoli is a high-value crop worth nearly one billion dollars per year. Although there is growing consumption in the Eastern United States, very little broccoli has been produced there....

• Michigan
• Animal Sciences
• Pests & Diseases

The perfect deli sandwich starts with optimal living conditions for turkeys everywhere. Temperature stress right before processing turkey directly impacts the quality of turkey meat that...

• Florida
• Plant Sciences
• Pests & Diseases

The Florida blueberry industry got its start in the 1970s when the University of Florida (UF) Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences developed the first Southern Highbush blueberry...

• North Carolina
• Transdisciplinary Research
• Plant Sciences

Both cranberries and blueberries are botanically part of the Vaccinium species. The U.S. Vaccinium industry’s domestic wholesale value exceeds $2 billion per year. Although production and...

• Iowa
• Animal Sciences
• USDA AFRI

Hongwei Xin and associates compared cage-free systems with more conventional approaches and found that the cage-free approach resulted in more airborne bacteria, ammonia, and dust. Worker...

• Iowa
• Plant Sciences
• Soil Sciences

U.S. farmers produce 41 percent of the world’s corn on 400,000 farms located primarily in the Midwest Corn Belt region. American production value of corn was over $50 billion in 2018. The...

• Massachusetts
• Plant Sciences

Dr. Heald’s work suggests that adaptation efforts replacing corn with wheat should be coupled with initiatives limiting ozone pollution to maximize production. While the team estimated...

• Georgia
• Pests & Diseases

The boll weevil is a pest that devastates cotton plants by feeding on its buds and flowers. Native to Central Mexico, the beetle spread throughout the southwest by the 1920s and nearly...

• Illinois
• Animal Sciences
• Genomics

The Human Genome Project accelerated the discovery of disease genes in humans, provided a new paradigm for medical research, and opened doors to analyze the genomes of various livestock....

• California
• Genomics
• Data Analytics

Dr. Bart Weimer and his team at UC Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine, are creating a massive database of genome signatures— collecting the “fingerprints” of 65,000 strains of...

• Florida
• Plant Sciences
• Pests & Diseases

Dr. Carrie Lapaire Harmon’s lab, Florida’s Plant Diagnostic Center, serves as the state’s early detection system. Her lab is equipped to quickly test and diagnose numerous plant diseases,...

• Missouri
• Data Analytics
• Plant Sciences

Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis are using machine learning to help farmers make informed planting decisions. The computational models allow farmers to receive the top...

• Wisconsin
• Transdisciplinary Research
• Animal Sciences

The dairy industry is committed to reducing GHGs associated with milk production. The researchers learned that if farmers implemented best management practices worldwide to reduce GHG...

• North Carolina
• Human Health & Nutrition
• Microbiomes

More than 30 million Americans have diabetes and more than 80 million American adults have prediabetes. Dr. Shengmin Sang is working to determine if there are dietary strategies focused...

• Georgia
• Sensors
• Plant Sciences

Dr. Williams and his colleagues at Fort Valley State University (FVSU) are bridging-the-gap of information between drones’ technological advances and farmers’ needs and expectations. In...

• Alabama
• USDA AFRI
• Food Safety

Dr. Woubit Abdela, Dr. Temesgen Samuel, and Dr. Teshome Yehualaeshet at Tuskegee University have tinkered with a 30-year-old genetics tool to invent a fast and portable foodborne illness...

• Nebraska
• Genomics
• Human Health & Nutrition

Wheat provides 20 percent of the protein and 20 percent of the calories consumed by humans worldwide. By developing cross-pollinating hybrids, scientists hope to leverage the natural...

• Georgia
• Data Analytics
• Genomics

Dr. Misztal and a team of international researchers are working to simplify genetic analyses for dairy cattle evaluation. Using data from more than 3 million Holstein cows, the team...

• Indiana
• Water Use

To ensure proper moisture content for productive soils in the U.S. Corn Belt region, farmers use drainage strategies on approximately 25% of their cropland. While this is some of the most...

• California
• Plant Sciences
• Genomics

Dubcovsky leads a collaboration of wheat-breeding labs throughout the U.S. whose work has made this acceleration possible. He and his colleagues have mapped out more than 90,000 genetic...

• Virginia
• Data Analytics
• Animal Sciences

Dr. White focuses on precision animal nutrition to improve livestock health and the efficiency of food production. Her team explores how the nexus of a specific animal’s behavior and...

• New York
• Human Health & Nutrition
• USDA AFRI

Marketers have mastered the art of generating impulse purchases at grocery stores. Customers waiting in line find tantalizing candy and other treats within their reach. Dr. David Just is...

• Texas
• Animal Sciences
• USDA AFRI

Antibiotics have been prescribed for people and animals at rates that have encouraged bacteria to expand resistance. If this trend continues, life-saving antibiotics may be ineffective in...

• Pennsylvania
• Pests & Diseases
• Plant Sciences

When caterpillars attack tomato plants, proteins in the insect saliva disarm the tomato defenses. Dr. Felton and his colleagues have identified another set of proteins in caterpillar...

• Pennsylvania
• Microbiomes
• Soil Sciences

This Penn State team is working to better understand how soil microbes and plant roots interact in order to provide new tools that maximize production, improve soil health, and reduce the...

• New Mexico
• Plant Sciences

Although they are not household words, guar gum (an extraction from guar beans) and guayule (a desert shrub) represent huge domestic and global markets. Demand for guar gum in the United...

• New York
• Plant Sciences
• Genomics

Dr. McCouch and Dr. Wang analyzed genetic sequencing of all the rice varieties whose seeds lie in the public domain to determine the genetics responsible for production levels in specific...

• California
• Plant Sciences
• Human Health & Nutrition

Dr. Elizabeth Sattely and her team are exploring how plants can be re-engineered to serve as miniature chemical production facilities to produce a wide array of biological agents.

• Ohio
• Animal Sciences
• Pests & Diseases

Chang-Won Lee, PhD, and his colleagues worry about more than the avian flu. They focus expansively on more than a single respiratory disease. While scientists may be able to generate...

• Nebraska
• Water Use

When Dr. Suat Irmak joined the faculty at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2003, he conducted a comprehensive needs assessment to determine what issues he should tackle. The...

• Wisconsin
• Human Health & Nutrition
• Genomics

The American Heart Association notes a recent study that showed millions of people worldwide could prevent early deaths and disability from heart disease by eating more fruits and...

• Pennsylvania
• Pests & Diseases

Insect pollinators are essential to U.S. growers of fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds. Honey bees are the premier managed pollinators of most crops, accounting for $11.7 billion of the...

• Missouri
• Human Health & Nutrition
• Genomics

Investments in agricultural research provide a boost to improve human health. With the sequencing of the swine (pig) genome, there are new opportunities to research with models that are...

• Texas
• Animal Sciences
• Genomics

Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD) is a combination of viral and bacterial cattle infections made worse by the stress of transportation to the feedlot. This project plans to breed enough...

• New York
• Sensors
• Plant Sciences

Dr. Stroock and his team are developing sensors to detect the thirst of apple trees in order to more precisely irrigate orchards. Instead of using traditional techniques to estimate water...

• Nebraska
• Animal Sciences
• Genomics

Daniel Ciobanu, PhD, and his team at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln found that sows expressing age at puberty early in life produce more litters during their lifetime.

• Nebraska
• Microbiomes
• Human Health & Nutrition

Inflammation is a major cause of health problems. Drs. Hutkins and Walter and their collaborators set out to improve gut health by using a novel formulation of probiotics (healthy...

• Indiana
• Soil Sciences
• Data Analytics

Purdue scientists have developed algorithms that account for how soil in specific locations interact with landscape features like streams and water catchments. These algorithms provide...

• Tennessee
• Soil Sciences
• Plant Sciences

Vegetable and fruit growers pay for a lot of plastic – $3.4 billion in worldwide sales in 2017. Farmers use plastic mulch to suppress weeds, retain moisture, prevent soil erosion, and...

• Tennessee
• Microbiomes
• Animal Sciences

Dr. Myer and his team work to improve the nutrition and feed efficiency of beef cattle. To do so, they are developing tools and technologies that examine the rumen and gut microbiome....

• Nebraska

Nebraska has experienced five $1 billion severe storm events since 2010.

• Virginia
• Plant Sciences
• Genomics

Phytophthora sojae is one of the most disruptive pathogens in soybean fields across the U.S. These scientists used information from P. sojae genomes to develop new diagnostic tools and to...

• North Carolina
• Human Health & Nutrition

At North Carolina State University, Cooperative Extension educators taught classes that empowered people to make better-informed decisions in communities across the state.

• New Mexico
• Genomics
• Plant Sciences

Dr. Randall and her team are utilizing the available natural genetic diversity in pecans for future breeding of better seeds. The ultimate goal of the research is to produce trees with...

• Colorado
• Data Analytics
• Water Use

Dr. Khosla and his team are reducing water and nitrogen use by enhancing the efficiency, productivity, profitability, and sustainability of crop production systems through informatics....

• Georgia
• Animal Sciences
• Food Safety

Salmonellosis is a disease passed from chickens infected with Salmonella bacteria to humans through their contaminated meat and eggs. It causes nearly 94 million infections with 155,000...

• Iowa
• Genomics
• Animal Sciences

Biosecurity protocols and vaccinations help prevent or reduce disease in pigs, but some animals will still get sick. To address this, Dr. Dekkers and his international team utilized the...

• Iowa
• USDA AFRI
• Data Analytics

Dr. Lisa Schulte Moore and Dr. Matthew Helmers lead an interdisciplinary team of scientists who have found an innovative way to minimize runoff, keeping water clean without sacrificing...

• Kansas
• Pests & Diseases
• Plant Sciences

The rice blast fungus is a feared pathogen, even after genetic research discovered how to introduce resistance in rice plants. Dr. Barbara Valent took on the blast-fungus challenge....

• Kansas
• Animal Sciences
• Genomics

Through cutting-edge genome editing, scientists are working to help the swine (pig) industry produce healthier, more resilient animals. Genome editors are enzymes that allow scientists to...

• North Carolina
• Plant Sciences
• Human Health & Nutrition

Nearly three million children and adults in the U.S. suffer from peanut allergies and their severe medical consequences. Dr. Jianmei Yu and her colleagues at N.C. State University...

• Illinois
• Data Analytics
• Plant Sciences

Dr. Guan and his team use computer modeling to determine how increasing temperatures impact soybean growth and crop production.  This enables them to more accurately predict the future...

• California
• Microbiomes
• Soil Sciences

Healthy crops depend upon healthy soil. Dr. Scow leads a multi-disciplinary team of researchers working at UC Davis’ Russell Ranch Sustainable Agriculture Facility and in farmers’...

• Kansas
• Animal Sciences
• Pests & Diseases

Farmers in Asia and Europe have struggled with Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea virus (PEDv) outbreaks for decades. Dr. Jason Woodworth and his team first confirmed pig feed as a path of...

• Georgia
• Animal Sciences
• Plant Sciences

The barber pole worm poses a great threat to the small ruminant (sheep and goat) industry. These harmful miniature predators cause irreversible damage to sheep and goats, including...

• California
• Food Safety
• USDA AFRI

Dr. Nitin and his team are discovering multiple techniques to minimize cross-contamination, which is a leading cause of foodborne outbreaks in fresh produce. They study how to prevent...

• Florida
• Genomics
• USDA AFRI

At University of Florida, researchers are working to save Florida’s citrus industry by applying a new gene-editing technique to combat citrus greening disease.

• Iowa
• Genomics
• Pests & Diseases

The total value of the U.S. soybean crop was $41 billion in 2016 according to the American Soybean Association. Soybean is heavily impacted by root and stem rot diseases caused by...

• Texas
• Animal Sciences
• Pests & Diseases

The leading natural cause of death in beef and dairy cattle is Bovine Respiratory Disease (BRD), a combination of viral and bacterial infections. The disease causes losses of more than a...

• North Carolina
• Sensors
• Food Safety

To protect against foodborne illnesses, researchers at North Carolina State University are working to keep certain disease-causing microorganisms out of the food supply entirely.

• Colorado
• Animal Sciences
• Microbiomes

Antimicrobial resistant-microbes (AMRs) pose a serious threat to public health. AMRs are found in people, animals, food, and the environment. They spread from animals to people, and from...

• Indiana
• Sensors
• Plant Sciences

Dr. Rainey and Dr. Cherkauer are automating part of the breeding process for soybeans. Drones fly over test plots and record high-resolution photos in a fraction of the time that it would...

• Texas
• Animal Sciences
• Pests & Diseases

A highly successful example of public research for animal health began in the 1950s in the fight to eradicate the New World Screwworm. The screwworm is a maggot that feeds off the flesh...

• Florida
• Genomics
• Pests & Diseases

The Florida citrus industry, directly and indirectly, generates approximately 45,000 full-time jobs with a total economic impact of approximately $8.6 billion per year in the state....

• Missouri

Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis have discovered a way to supercharge protein production up to a thousandfold. The researchers employed a tool used in biomedical research...

• Texas
• Transdisciplinary Research
• Soil Sciences

Dr. Morgan and her team are helping farmers and the public understand the importance of soil health. No-till farming, or growing crops without disturbing the soil through tillage, is a...

• Missouri
• Human Health & Nutrition
• Microbiomes

Nutrient-dense therapeutic foods have reduced deaths from childhood malnutrition but do little to improve long-term problems linked to the condition, including stunted growth, impaired...

• Michigan
• Food Safety
• Microbiomes

Salmonella is a formidable foe in low-moisture foods. The project’s overall goal is to enhance the development, improvement, and commercial adoption of pathogen-reduction technologies for...

• New York
• Food Safety
• Human Health & Nutrition

Foodborne illnesses can be caused by food coming in contact with bacteria on surfaces in food-processing plants, restaurants, and households. When enough bacteria congregate, they create...

• North Carolina
• Genomics
• Pests & Diseases

Dr. Rodolphe Barrangou is using a new technology known as CRISPR, which dramatically speeds up the editing of bacterial genetics, to examine the pathogen’s DNA and determine its origin...

• Illinois
• Data Analytics

Dr. Irwin and his colleagues are bringing their research straight to farmers. Their website, called Farmdoc, serves the “Corn Belt” agricultural community. Updated daily, it now has over...

• Indiana
• Human Health & Nutrition
• USDA AFRI

People suffering from thiamin deficiencies often don’t know the cause of their symptoms, which may include exhaustion, loss of appetite, and shortness of breath. Dr. Mauer and Dr....

• Pennsylvania
• Microbiomes
• Human Health & Nutrition

Dr. Perdew explains that all cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, brussels sprouts, kale, cabbage, cauliflower) contain an organic chemical compound called “indole glucosinolates.” When that...

• Kansas
• Plant Sciences
• Genomics

Funded by USDA, the International Wheat Yield Partnership Coordinated Agricultural Project (CAP) and its predecessor Triticeae CAP (T-CAP) focused on improving wheat and barley for...