September 10, 2024

Legislative Update
Last month we reported that both House and Senate committees had passed separate versions of the FY25 budget. They differed significantly from each other, and neither have been taken to the floor in their respective chambers. So where do we stand?

The FY24 budget expires on September 30, and it must be noted that the Farm Bill does as well. Last year the Farm Bill was extended for one year, as an agreement on a new bill was not reached. It was hoped the added time would allow for an agreement, but little has happened, and the new deadline is fast approaching. Without some type of action on the budget, we face a partial government shutdown on October 1.

The GOP is having internal discussions in the House about a continuing resolution (CR) to fund the government for some period of time, but so far they have not been able to reach an agreement with their members. Main points of contention appear to be the length of the agreement (3 months, 6 months, or 1 year) and whether to include a voting bill favored by the Freedom Caucus in the CR, which is opposed by the Democrats. Potential cuts to feeding programs are another area of disagreement. In spite of strong employment growth, food insecurity remains high. Feeding America, a nationwide network that includes food banks, food pantries, and local meal programs, reports that more than 47 million people in the United States face hunger, including 1 in 5 children. This is one of the reasons that nutrition programs remain a major part of the Farm Bill.

If an agreement can be reached on a CR for the budget in the House, it is expected that another extension of the Farm Bill would be included. The Senate would like a clean CR on the budget and would be expected to include an extension of the Farm Bill.

We will continue to work on both, but please encourage your members of Congress to act on these important pieces of legislation.

Our Promise to the People and the Planet
agInnovation, a nationwide system of agricultural research stations that is operated under the auspices of the nation's land-grant universities and dedicated to the science that feeds the world, recently released their Science Roadmap for Food and Agriculture. It describes a challenging and exciting future for the nation's land-grant colleges of agriculture and state agricultural experiment stations. It reflects comprehensive thinking about the future of agricultural sciences and identifies future directions for research in food and agricultural sciences. The Roadmap makes the case for new investments in research to address the following increasingly complex and pervasive issues:

• An interdependent global economy
• Climate variability
• Demands on the environment and the natural resource base
• Renewable bioenergy sources and energy security
• Health care costs
• Trends toward obesity
• Hunger and food security for the world's population
• Challenges to individual, family, and community well-being

The Roadmap defines seven separate Grand Challenges that land-grant university researchers, scientists, and leaders identified as critical for a sustainable future for our planet and its people. You can find details at https://www.aginnovation.info/our-promise.

USDA Invests $17.6M to Protect the Health and Welfare of Agricultural Animals
The US Department of Agriculture's (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) recently announced an investment of $17.6 million to advance agricultural research that protects the health and welfare of agricultural animals. These projects include high-priority research on highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) and African swine fever (ASF). They are part of USDA's "One Health" efforts, an integrated, collaborative approach to address issues that affect the health of people, plants, animals, and our ecosystems.

"Protecting the health and welfare of agricultural animals is integral to ensuring a safe, sustainable, resilient, and ethically sound food system," said NIFA Director Dr. Manjit Misra. "Healthy livestock are more productive and less likely to harbor and spread diseases that can affect humans. In addition, properly managed livestock systems help maintain biodiversity and sustainable land use."

The awards include $12.7 million for 27 projects funded through NIFA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative's (AFRI) Diseases of Agricultural Animals program and $4.8 million for 10 projects funded through AFRI's Welfare of Agricultural Animals program.

The AFRI Diseases of Agricultural Animals program focuses on maintaining healthy agricultural animals to ensure a safe and adequate food supply. The program supports research in whole-animal health, including disease prevention and control.

Several projects focus on research related to vaccines that could mitigate the spread of HPAI and ASF. HPAI is a major threat to animal health, trade, and the economy worldwide. ASF is a deadly pig disease that spreads rapidly and affects domestic and wild swine. While not a threat to human health, the virus could devastate America's swine industry and food supply if it entered the United States. (MORE)

Click here to check on future NIFA funding opportunities.

The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) is celebrating its 10-year anniversary throughout 2024 with numerous initiatives, including monthly scientific webinars. These monthly webinars highlight various aspects of FFAR-funded research.

Please join on Tuesday, September 24, at noon EDT for September's webinar that will highlight the benefits and greater impact of collaboration in agriculture research. Attendees can expect an overview of FFAR and their collaborative public-private partnership model.

The webinar is an excellent opportunity to learn more about FFAR's model, how to partner with FFAR, and how the agriculture sector can enact meaningful change to meet sustainability goals. A recording of the webinar will be available on the FFAR website shortly after the webinar has concluded.

Please contact me if you have questions, ideas, or suggestions on any of these or other policy issues. We will provide additional information on these and other emerging issues as it becomes available. We need to work together to maintain a strong and effective national research effort.

Ken Olson, PhD, PAS
Science Policy Coordinator
keolson@prodigy.net