Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI)

The Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) is the nation’s leading competitive grants program for agricultural sciences. The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) awards AFRI research, education, and extension grants to improve rural economies, increase food production, stimulate the bioeconomy, mitigate impacts of climate variability, address water availability issues, ensure food safety and security, enhance human nutrition, and train the next generation of the agricultural workforce. AFRI was established by Congress in the 2008 Farm Bill and re-authorized in the 2018 Farm Bill. The program was re-authorized to be funded at $700 million a year. The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 funds AFRI at $415 million. NIFA provides AFRI grants to support research, education and extension activities in six Farm Bill priority areas: • Plant Health and Production and Plant Products; • Animal Health and Production and Animal Products; • Food Safety, Nutrition, and Health; • Bioenergy, Natural resources, and Environment; • Agriculture Systems and Technology; and • Agriculture Economics and Rural Communities. AFRI-funded science is vital to meeting food, fiber, and fuel demands as the world’s population races toward a projected 9 billion by 2050 concomitant with diminishing land and water resources and increasingly variable climatic conditions. In addition, AFRI programs help develop new technologies and a workforce that will advance our national security, our energy self-sufficiency, and the health of Americans.