USDA Announces Sustainable Agricultural Systems Grant Opportunity DEADLINE: June 4, 2019

Agriculture (USDA)Federal Agency/Executive Branch grants

May 16, 2019

Print This Article Share it With Friends

(U.S. Department of Agriculture) Within AFRI, the longterm purpose of this Sustainable Agricultural Systems (SAS) Request for Applications (RFA) is to help transform the U.S. food and agricultural system to increase production in sustainable ways as we approach a world population of 10 billion by 2050, and to do so in the context of diminishing
land and water resources, climate variability, threats of disease and pest outbreaks, and challenges to human health and well-being.

Solving these challenges will require a convergence of science, technology, and policy to improve agricultural productivity; ensure a safe, affordable, and nutritious supply of food; invigorate and realize the promise of the bioeconomy; and promote the development of a talented agricultural workforce. Recent advances in plant and animal biology, new technologies, the integration of large and complex sources of data knowledge of infrastructure and markets, and holistic approaches offer unprecedented opportunities for meeting the demands of the growing population.

Transformation of our nation’s agricultural systems can ensure continued productivity growth, while conserving natural resources, and minimizing the environmental footprint of agriculture.

The transformation of food and agricultural systems also requires an investment in human capital to catalyze a secure global food system that meets the health and nutritional needs of people across rural and urban communities alike.
For FY 2019, applications to the SAS RFA must focus on systems approaches that promote transformational changes in the U.S. food and agricultural system within the context of the longterm goals outlined subsequently in the program area priority description. NIFA seeks creative and visionary applications that take a systems approach for significantly improving the supply of affordable, safe, nutritious, and accessible agricultural products, while fostering economic
development and rural prosperity in America. These approaches must demonstrate current needs and anticipate future social, cultural, behavioral, economic, health, and environmental impacts.

Additionally, the outcomes of the work being proposed should result in societal benefits, including promotion of rural prosperity and enhancement of quality of life for all those involved in food and agricultural value chains from production to utilization and consumption.

The amount available for new grants in this FY 2019 SAS RFA is $90 million, for awards of up to $10 million each.

This RFA solicits Coordinated Agricultural Project Grants, and Strengthening Coordinated Agricultural Project (Food and Agricultural Science Enhancement; FASE) Grants, whereas project type solicited in this RFA is an Integrated project. See Part I, C (Program Area Description) for grant and project types solicited, and Part II, C for a detailed description of each individual grant type and project type.

This notice identifies the objectives for the AFRI SAS program including program priorities, deadline dates, funding information, eligibility criteria for projects and applicants, and application forms and associated instructions needed to apply for an AFRI SAS grant.

...

This RFA solicits applications for projects focused on: (1) increasing profitability in agriculture through reducing input costs, increasing productivity, and reducing losses due to environmental and biological stresses, including pests and diseases; (2) fostering economic development and prosperity in rural America by catalyzing production of high-value bio-based chemicals and other products using agricultural feedstocks; and/or (3) enhancing rural prosperity and health by ensuring access to affordable, safe and nutritious food to sustain healthy lifestyles. This RFA is
soliciting creative and visionary project applications developed by transdisciplinary teams that integrate research, education, and extension activities and effectively use a systems approach to promote convergence of science and technology to solve present and future food and agricultural production system challenges.

Agricultural systems are inclusive of value chains from production to consumption of food and other agricultural products, and from traditional open-field farms, ranches, and managed forests to controlled production in built environments across the rural-urban continuum. Consideration must be given to how new strategies or other technical interventions may alter existing systems and the future implications of unintended effects. Applicants must demonstrate that the changes resulting from the proposed efforts will ensure the viability of the entire food and agricultural value chain. This could include improving profitability, natural resources quality, food safety and
quality, and the health and well-being of people and communities. The systems may include approaches that reduce the environmental footprint including, but not limited to, soil and ecosystem health, water and nutrient use, greenhouse gases, and energy use.

Projects must use a systems approach that recognizes and utilizes the convergence of rapidly advancing science and technology platforms including biotechnology, nanotechnology, information science, cognitive science, public engagement and others to address these complex and intertwined problems, and ensure the economic, environmental, and community well-being goals of sustainable agriculture. Projects must include demonstrable efforts that enhance education and training. This includes education of our current and next generation of farmers,
workers, and scientists who must be equipped to use new skills, technologies, training, and experiences to find solutions to global food and agricultural challenges. Extension and other engagement must advance strategies for public acceptance of transformative discoveries. The outcomes should produce significant behavioral changes leading to sustainable production and consumption practices, and improving the health and well-being of the public.

Projects must plan to employ meaningful performance metrics that measure progress during the
grant period toward the long-term goals described below. These metrics can include how the
proposed system and its components contribute to productivity and profitability, reduced
environmental footprint, natural resources quality, food safety and quality, nutritional security,
human health and well-being, a skilled workforce, and safe jobs.
Applications must address one or more of the following long-term goals:
• Increase profitability in agriculture by reducing input use, expanding existing and
creating new markets, increasing productivity, and curbing production losses due to
environmental and biological stresses, including pests and diseases. A variety of
technologies and management practices can lead to increases in the productivity and
profitability of crop and livestock systems through sustainable agricultural intensification,
smart strategies for climate adaptation. Such management practices and technologies
include non-traditional crops and breeds, improved breeds and cultivars, smart irrigation
management, greater resource-scavenging by roots, improvements in the absorption and
utilization of nutrients, integrated pest management, manipulations of microbiomes, and
effective farm management. Employing novel strategies to protect yields and other supply
chain components from biotic and abiotic stress losses, such as climate and extreme
weather events, pathogens, pests and parasites, can increase food and economic security.
Farmer profits can also be increased by creating new and novel products and markets
with innovations in biotechnology and traditional agriculture. Expansion of existing and
development of new markets occur within global markets and are influenced by domestic
and international policies. Projects on traditional (crop, livestock, or managed forests) or
non-traditional (e.g., hydroponic, aquaculture, aquaponics) production systems should
address one or both of the following:
o Develop or improve system models, decision support tools, data systems, new
technologies, and system reconfigurations that address resource use, natural and
purchased inputs, environmental impacts, and innovative products and markets at
and across relevant scales leading to new efficiencies and increased profitability;
o Develop system-modeling approaches that identify social, economic, policy,
cultural, and other barriers and opportunities to improving agricultural production
and profitability, food quality, nutritional security, biosecurity, and food safety
that result in better health, well-being, and prosperity for farmers, agricultural
workers, consumers, and others impacted by changes to food and agricultural
systems.
• Foster economic development and prosperity in rural America by catalyzing the
bioeconomy through value added innovation, including production of high-value
bio-based chemicals and other products using agricultural feedstocks. The
sustainable bioeconomy encompasses the development of bio-based products that
promote human health, economic prosperity, energy security, and ecosystem resources.
The development of bio-based products can complement existing agricultural production
systems and industrialized processes by creating opportunities to improve overall system
profitability and productivity. Projects should address the following:
10
o New and/or improved strategies to develop bio-based products that improve
product functionality, increase potential revenues and/or reduce cost over
incumbent products; this includes addressing the full supply chain for food, feed
or fiber production systems from feedstock/germplasm improvement through
product formulation and end-user market demand;
o Strategies and approaches that provide beneficial ecosystem services, such as
improved water availability and quality, improved life cycle emissions, nutrient
use reduction, or wildlife and pollinator habitat enhancements; and
o Strategies to alleviate technical, social, behavioral, and economic barriers leading
to adoption resulting in improved consumer attitudes toward the bioeconomy and
strengthening the rural economy through development of new products and
employment opportunities.
• Enhance the contribution of food and agriculture to health of the nation through
development, adoption, and application of new or existing technologies, tools,
education, and other resources to ensure access to sufficient quantities of safe,
nutritious, and affordable food. Changes to food and agricultural systems can influence
the incidence of foodborne and chronic illnesses, and metabolic disorders. Food quality,
nutrient composition and utilization, and access to food can greatly impact human health,
community prosperity, and overall quality of life. Proposed projects should include
strategies for effective behavioral, social, economic, cultural, community and/or
environmental interventions to facilitate decision-making processes resulting in healthier
food choices. Projects should address one or both of the following:
o Develop pre-harvest interventions that maximize impact within the system and
potentially address points of greater impact. These may include approaches such
as the development of plant varieties and animal breeds that promote food safety
or enhance nutritional value;
o Develop new approaches for mitigating foodborne hazards (including
antimicrobial resistance determinants and the organisms carrying them), or to
improve understanding and/or engineering of multifaceted interactions that impact
the functionality of foods. Work should include consumer education and
engagement during post-harvest production and processing.
Descriptions and examples of goals given above are meant to be guidance for project
development, rather than being prescriptive. The project teams are expected to define the
scope of their systems, system components, and detailed metrics that are directed at
achieving one or more of the three goals in this RFA. READ MORE