Auburn university is an 1862 land-grant institution that serves the citizens of alabama through its instructional, research, and extension programs

The U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded Auburn University $2,527,830 on October 1, 2025, under the Hatch Act formula grant program (CFDA 10.203), which funds agricultural research conducted through state agricultural experiment stations.

Auburn University's Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station will conduct science-based research and extension programming addressing eight priority focus areas: community development with emphasis on emergency and crisis preparedness; novel energy systems advancing agricultural competitiveness; family, home, and 4-H youth development; food systems and food safety; global food security and hunger; human nutrition, well-being, health, and obesity; natural resource and environmental sustainability; and rural health initiatives. The Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, established in 1883, develops integrated research projects and results-driven extension programs serving all Alabama residents and addressing challenges in population shifts, food and water security, energy demands, agricultural and environmental sustainability, rural resilience, biosecurity, and economic development.

The award covers the period October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2027, with place of performance in Alabama. The Hatch Act formula grant program facilitates collaborative research among institutions in multiple states; Auburn's award supports the station's operations alongside state funding from Alabama. Funds may be carried forward for up to one year beyond the fiscal year of appropriation without prior approval.

The alabama agricultural experiment station (AAES) at auburn university was established in 1883 to conduct scientific research that would advance alabama's agricultural and forestry industries. AAES operations are supported with funding from the USDA national institute of food and agriculture (NIFA) hatch program and the state of alabama. The specific purpose for hatch multistate funds is to facilitate collaborative research among several institutions in multiple states. The state of alabama, nation and world are facing major challenges with population shifts, food and water security, energy demands, agricultural and environmental sustainability, rural resilience, biosecurity, and economic development. In response, integrated, science-based research projects as well as practical, results-driven extension programs have been developed. All planned programs are developed within the context of research and community engagement with relevance to all residents of alabama who may benefit from the local knowledge base or service. Our programs will focus on critical issues related to 1) community development, 2) exploring novel energy systems to advance the competitiveness of american agriculture 3) family, home, and 4-H and youth development, 4) food systems and food safety, 5) global food security and hunger, 6) human nutrition, well-being, health and obesity, 7) natural resource and environmental sustainability, and 8) rural health initiatives. Community development initiatives will begin focusing on emergency and crisis preparedness. Efforts will continue to assist in preparing an alabama workforce comprised of motivated individuals who can successfully navigate employment transitions throughout their lifespan. Exploring novel energy systems that advance the competitiveness of american agriculture will contribute to the national goal of energy independence and job growth to make america safer, stronger and prosperous by supporting research to develop processes for converting locally and regionally available biomass including agricultural waste into biofuels and biomaterials. Family, home, 4-H, and youth development focuses on strengthening families by teaching members how to improve the quality of their lives through improving family relationships, financial resource management, and citizen and leadership development among other objectives. The goal of the food systems and food safety program is to enhance food systems, food safety and agricultural biosecurity. The goal for global food security and hunger is to enhance competitiveness and sustainability of food and agricultural industries in alabama through development and implementation of best practices or technologies. The objectives of the human nutrition, well-being, health and obesity and health program are to improve the health of alabamians, targeting limited-resource families, through chronic disease awareness, physical activity, nutrition education, health literacy, and access to and consumption of fresh fruits and vegetables. The natural resource and environmental sustainability program will generate knowledge to manage agricultural and natural systems in the face of extreme weather events and facilitate sustainable natural resources. Rural health initiatives will foster collaborations among land-grant, community, and healthcare partners to advance understanding of how to assess patient-centric factors that affect health service availability to crosssystem healthcare. IT also will contribute to improvement in public health, individual health, rural health service availability, and sustainability.