Project Grant 20256701445142
- This $638,000 Project Grant from the US Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) program will fund research to identify genetic factors controlling carotenoid synthesis, storage, and bioavailability in sorghum grain. Colorado State University will conduct the research over four years to determine how sorghum genes and the environment impact carotenoid content and accumulation. Researchers will also...
- This Project Grant award from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture provides $1.19 million to fund research at the University of Nebraska from March 1, 2022 to February 28, 2026. The award is made under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative competitive grants program (AFRI, CFDA #10.310), which supports fundamental and applied research, extension, and education addressing food and agricultural sciences. Specifically, the University of...
- This $500,000 Project Grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Biotechnology Risk Assessment Research program (CFDA #10.219) will fund research at Texas A&M Agrilife Research to develop a thorough understanding of gene flow between crop sorghum and Johnsongrass. Specifically, the award will support determining the frequency of gene transfer through pollen produced by sorghum and hybrids with Johnsongrass serving as the female parent....
- The University of Tennessee received a $609,095 Project Grant award from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) federal grant program. The award will fund research from June 1, 2023 to May 31, 2027 focusing on studying and modeling the composition and component interactions of carnauba wax, formulating tunable biobased substitutes, and testing coating performance of resulting technologies on...
- The University of Florida was awarded a $650,000 Project Grant from the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative competitive grants program (AFRI, CFDA #10.310). The three-year grant will fund research into the biosynthesis of flavonoids in sorghum plants, which produce compounds that protect against stresses from climate change and have potential health benefits. Specifically, the university will...
- This $3,499,654 Project Grant was awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Organic Agriculture Research and Extension Initiative (CFDA 10.307) program. The grant will facilitate the development of organic agriculture production, breeding, and processing methods for sorghum, a drought-tolerant, non-GMO crop used for food and feed production globally. The long-term goal is to identify high-performing grain and forage sorghum varieties...
- The Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded Iowa State University a $498,961 project grant under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative competitive grants program (CFDA 10.310) to develop improved forage sorghum germplasm with high biomass yield and nutritive value adapted to the shorter growing seasons of the Upper Midwest region. Iowa State will conduct regional testing trials of advanced experimental sorghum hybrids at eight locations in Iowa,...
- The University of Nevada, Reno will use $800,000 in funding from the US Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) federal grant program to identify which gene at the Inhibition of Alien Pollen locus controls the ability of alien pollen tubes to reach the ovary during interspecific cross-pollination in sorghum. The researchers will characterize plant morphology, reproductive biology, off-target copy number, and...
- Washington State University will utilize a $650,000 Project Grant award from the United States Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture to develop Physaria fendleri as a domestic source of hydroxy fatty acids. Through the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative competitive grants program, the university will elucidate Physaria fendleri's efficient mechanisms for accumulating hydroxy fatty acids over three years using functional genomics and gene editing techniques....
- The University of Wisconsin-Madison received a two-year, $264,000 Project Grant award from the US Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative competitive grants program. The grant will fund research into sweet corn sugar and starch composition through identification and analysis of genes that modify these traits, such as the Sugary Enhancer 1 gene. The university will produce and analyze the SE1 protein, identify other...
This $650,000 Project Grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) under the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) program aims to establish sorghum as a new, domestic source of natural wax to reduce reliance on imported carnauba wax. Researchers will study how waxes vary across different sorghum varieties, identify the most abundant wax types, and determine the genes controlling their production. Advanced laboratory and chemical analyses will be used to understand sorghum wax production at the molecular level. The researchers will also work to develop new sorghum plants with higher amounts of valuable waxes. Once sufficient wax is collected, it will be shared with industrial partners to test in real-world products like cosmetics and coatings. This research project, with a performance period from September 2025 to August 2028, will provide hands-on training for students in plant biology, genetics, and chemistry to support the next generation of agricultural scientists.
Mod # | Description | ReasonForModification | Federal Obligation | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not listed | $650.0k | 8/28/25 |