2023 Seeding Solutions Program – Mar 8

Posted by Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research on February 14, 2023

Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research invites applications for 2023 Seeding Solutions Program

The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) invites applications for its 2023 Seeding Solutions program, encouraging innovative and transformative research to benefit farmers, consumers, and the environment.

To that end, FFAR will award approximately 10 meritorious applications—prioritizing those projects that emphasize a commitment to cross-sector partnerships—addressing and providing solutions to an intractable problem and/or accelerating innovation within FFAR’s Challenge Areas or AgMission, which include:

Soil Health: Advanced understanding of soil health, how it is measured, and how to manage and optimize the sustainable delivery of the ecosystem services soils provide.

Sustainable Water Management: Interdisciplinary, model–based research to enhance terrestrial water quality and supplies and minimize linked environmental impacts while maximizing crop production through increased adoption of strategically placed and designed agricultural water management practices.

Next Generation Crops: Advanced breeding methods and development of biotic and abiotic stress tolerance for crops grown in organic and conventional cropping systems to increase farmer profitability and environmental resilience.

Advanced Animal Systems: Improved animal health, welfare and productivity, antibiotic stewardship, and environmental sustainability. FFAR encourages research with outcomes relevant to multiple species and/or One Health approaches incorporating transdisciplinary research relevant to animals, humans, and the environment.

Urban Food Systems: Elucidation of connections between urban food systems and the urban environment, in addition to the connections between rural and urban communities, to improve food and nutritional security, human health outcomes, economic opportunities, and food system resiliency through transdisciplinary partnerships.

Health-Agriculture Nexus: Systems–level approaches (both technological and non–technological) aimed at reducing food and nutritional insecurity and improving human health in the United States and worldwide.

AgMission: Innovative research and integrated data systems to advance knowledge and adoption of Climate–Smart Agriculture practices, focusing on co–design with agricultural stakeholders and understanding enabling conditions for systems–level change.

FFAR will award a total of up to $10 million in grants through the program, with up to 10 individual awards ranging from between $300,000 and $1 million.

Applications that demonstrate strong partnerships by matching from external sources outside the applicant institutions are encouraged. These partners may include but are not limited to the private sector, nonprofits, commodity and trade groups, state governments, and others that do not traditionally work in agriculture.

Eligible applicants include higher education institutions, nonprofit and for-profit organizations, and United States government-affiliated research agencies. Any individual(s) with the skills, knowledge, and resources necessary to carry out the proposed research as program director(s)/principal investigator(s) may apply to the program through their home institution or organization.

Pre-applications are due March 8, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. ET, and selected applicants will be invited to submit a full application by June 28, 2023, at 5:00 p.m. ET.

For complete program guidelines and application instructions, see the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research website.

Deadline: March 8, 2023 at 5:00 p.m. ET (Pre-applications)