The maryland agricultural experiment station (maes) in the college of agriculture and natural resources (agnr) at the university of maryland was first established in 1888 and currently fosters…

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded the University of Maryland College of Agriculture and Natural Resources $1,965,770 on October 1, 2025, under the Hatch Act Payments to Agricultural Experiment Stations program (CFDA 10.203).

The Maryland Agricultural Experiment Station conducts multistate collaborative research on high-priority agricultural challenges in partnership with other state agricultural experiment stations, NIFA, and other research institutions and agencies. Research activities align with the FY2026 plan of work and USDA strategic goals 1–5, addressing agricultural productivity, food safety, environmental stewardship, and public health. Faculty participation in multistate projects requires approval by the MAES station director and extension director, with an official representative appointed to each multistate project's technical committee.

MAES research operates across multiple locations in Maryland, including laboratories within six academic departments in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, campus greenhouses, and eight experimental research farms distributed across the Eastern Shore, Western, and Central Maryland regions within four Research and Education Centers.

Performance of work extends from October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2027, with administrative and operational oversight at College Park, Maryland. The award is classified as a formula grant. Hatch funds may be carried over for up to one year after the end of the year for which they were appropriated without prior approval.

The maryland agricultural experiment station (maes) in the college of agriculture and natural resources (agnr) at the university of maryland was first established in 1888 and currently fosters research at all levels (e.g., molecular, cellular, organismic, and ecosystem) related to sustainable food and fiber production while considering economic and environmental viability. Maes serves the state through its research conducted in laboratories within the six academic departments of the agnr (and two departments in the college of computer, mathematical, and natural sciences), campus greenhouses, and experimental farms located in the four research and education centers (recs). The recs house a total of eight experimental research farms that are located across different land resource and physiographic regions of maryland in the eastern shore, western and central maryland. Maes research activities funded WI TH hatch multistate research funds align with the FY2026 plan of work, the USDA's strategic plan (2022-2026), specifically goals 1 to 5. These activities also address the agnr's five strategic initiatives. The mission of the multistate research program is to enable research on high-priority topics among the state agricultural experiment stations (saes) in partnership with the nifa and USDA, other research institutions and agencies, and with extension. In this way, technological opportunities and complex problem-solving activities that are beyond the scope of a single saes can be approached in a more efficient and comprehensive way. Faculty participation in a multistate project or coordinating committee is approved by the maes station director and the extension director. An official representative is appointed from among the faculty members from agnr to represent maes in each of the multistate projects' technical committees. Our multistate research projects advance agricultural productivity, food safety, environmental stewardship, and public health. Hatch-multistate projects include research on - (1) poultry virology research focuses on understanding circulating strains of infectious bursal disease virus, avian reovirus, and avian influenza virus to develop improved diagnostics, vaccines, and prevention strategies that safeguard poultry health and industry sustainability; (2) dairy genetics research seeks to enhance COW and calf health, longevity, and resilience through advanced genomic and quantitative breeding tools while training graduate students in functional genetics and bioinformatics; (3) food safety research targets microbial contamination in fresh produce by studying environmental persistence of foodborne pathogens and plant-pathogen interactions to inform risk reduction strategies and regulatory policies; (4) conservation economics research analyzes how to design cost-effective, incentive-based contracts and assess additionality in agricultural conservation programs, particularly for riparian buffer adoption in maryland to improve environmental outcomes and policy efficiency; (5) postharvest fruit research investigates physiological disorders such as bitter PIT and chilling injury, developing predictive tools, new storage technologies, and management strategies that maintain fruit quality, reduce food waste, and enhance grower profitability; and (6) vector ecology research examines how environmental and social factors shape competition between aedes albopictus and culex pipiens mosquitoes in urban habitats, improving prediction and control of mosquito borne diseases like west nile, zika, and chikungunya. These projects, in collaboration with land-grant scientists in other states, strengthen sustainable agriculture, food systems, and ecosystem health through innovative science, technology, and education.