Research and innovation is the primary focus of the NH agricultural experiment station

The Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded the University System of New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station $1,136,206 under the Cooperative Forestry Research program (CFDA 10.202) on October 1, 2025, for the period through September 30, 2027.

The award supports forestry research and education within McIntire-Stennis Cooperative Forestry Research initiatives. The Agricultural Experiment Station, a division of the public land-grant university headquartered in Durham, New Hampshire, operates from Lee, New Hampshire. Between 2024 and 2028, the station expects to support between 44 and 50 research projects across five critical issues alongside McIntire-Stennis forestry science areas. Research priorities include crop and dairy production biotechnology, sustainable aquaculture development, soil microbiology and climate science, water quality management as it relates to agricultural land practices, and nutrition and health research for Northern New England. The station conducts applied and basic science with outputs including peer-reviewed publications, technical reports, decision-support tools, and extension programming serving agricultural producers and communities in the region.

In the 2024-2028 period, the station expects to support between 44 and 50 research projects across five critical issues as well as projects within the mcintire-stennis forestry science areas. Slow but consistent faculty hiring in our college and increased efforts to recruit scientists to apply their expertise to NH agricultural issues is expected to grow the AES research portfolio. Within the agriculture area, research will focus on increasing knowledge and technology to support highly diversified agricultural and food system that produces, processes and delivers food, fiber, and myriad environmental services. Efforts will focus on biotechnological and management improvements in crop and dairy production to minimize production and market risks and capturing new marketing opportunities. Research is expected to grow in efforts to grow the state's sustainable aquaculture industry to benefit the blue economy. Work will also continue to target issues related to mitigating and adapting to new agricultural needs, especially in the role of agriculture as a solution to increasing environmental issues. Through basic and applied science, an emerging area of excellence is in soil microbiology, and these efforts will be one of the core of the nhaes research mission in climate science. A second core area is in water quality management, especially as IT relates to the relationships between water, agricultural land and management practices. Research is expected to grow in the nutrition and health and wellness area and social science fields, as early-career faculty transition into being more experienced scientists and new faculty are onboarded. The focus of the research will be on identifying and developing effective recommendations for ensuring nutritional balance and health of northern new england. Nhaes research will also continue characterize changing socioeconomic and demographic trends and how local food systems can be best developed to support all citizens of the state and region. The nhaes will continue its strengthening outreach and science communication program. Biannual themed research reports will continue to be compiled and distributed in the station's flagship publication inspired. The station also maintains its highly robust activity of disseminating its research through weekly news briefs (which focus on nhaes research), social media presence, and field days. Furthermore, increasing integration with extension is expected, as communicators from the nhaes and extension have begun R egular interactions to determine ways to increase stakeholders' benefits from science communication