National Institute of Food and Agriculture
This fall saw the dawn of a new era at USDA as the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) replaced the 15-year-old Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service.
NIFA’s creation, mandated by the 2008 Farm Bill, is intended to invigorate and strengthen support for food and agricultural science in this country. The Institute’s first director is presidential appointee Dr. Roger Beachy, founding president of the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center.
NIFA’s unique mission is to advance knowledge for agriculture, the environment, human health and well-being, and communities. NIFA provides program leadership in these areas and helps to fund research, education, and extension at land grant universities and partner organizations at the state and local level.
An important aspect of NIFA’s work is to promote a public understanding and appreciation of science, assuring that knowledge is available in the public sector to sustain food, agricultural, and natural resource systems.
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