A Message from the Director, National Institute of Food and Agriculture
“Funding research should be considered as an investment in our nation’s future, an investment that will pay big dividends in the years to come.”
I’m pleased to report the accomplishments of the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) for Fiscal Year 2015.
This annual report highlights the amazing work undertaken by our grantees in the areas of research, education, and extension in 2015. The successes we underscore in this report are the result of our strong collaboration with our nation’s land-grant universities, non-land grant universities, farmers and livestock producers across the country, small businesses, other federal agencies, our USDA sister agencies, public and private organizations and associations, and our growing list of international partners. Supported by the funding provided by Congress, our grantees and partners are making significant progress to address our nation’s most compelling societal problems related to food security and safety, nutrition and public health, natural resource stewardship, jobs, and economic health.
As this report accentuates, investments into our flagship competitive grants program, the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), and other critical competitive and capacity programs, are helping to meet the food, fiber, fuel, and shelter demands of a world population that is racing toward a projected nine billion by 2050 in the face of diminishing land and water resources and variable climate. Increased funding for NIFA can help accelerate much-needed solutions to critical and daunting food and agriculture challenges.
It’s a privilege for me to lead this phenomenal agency and work alongside such stellar staff. Through their dedication and commitment, our talented NIFA employees are leading the way to ensure global nutritional security through the availability, accessibility, and affordability of safe, ample, and nutritious food. Our taxpayers are truly seeing the benefits.
We look forward to the coming year, and the transformative and remarkable discoveries made by our grantees, through NIFA funding, to solve to our world’s most pressing societal and global challenges.
