This week the Department of Agriculture announced a $2.3 million investment, which is a part of the USDA Small Business Innovation Research Program. The money was split into three separate sections by the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
First, there were eight grants for small businesses to improve plant production and protection totaling $812,900. Second, there were another eight grants totaling $797,600 for animal production and protection. Last, there was a total of $706,100 that went to seven grants for conserving natural resources.
When it comes to plant production projects, they plan to use the money for research into domestic vanilla production, blueberry pollinators, and plant-based proteins. For animal production grants, they’ll be used for vaccine research, testing the quality of animal feed, and data on herd productivity. The conservation grants will go towards fertilizer and irrigation research.
The next Phase 1 request for Small Business Innovation Research applications is supposed to open up in July 2021.
