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Awarded Grants
Below is a listing of our awarded grants that tackle big food and agriculture challenges.

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92 Grants found

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Promoting antimicrobial stewardship through improved understanding of how feedlot cattle are classified based on BRD risk

Year Awarded  2023

FFAR award amount   $124,948

Total award amount   $249,911

Location   Manhattan, KS

Matching Funders   Kansas State University, Beef Marketing Research, Cactus Research, Five Rivers Cattle Feeding, Hy-Plains Feedyard, Innovative Livestock Services, Veterinary Research & Consulting Services, Zoetis

Grantee Institution   Kansas State University

The livestock industry is plagued by bovine respiratory disease (BRD), an infectious condition that can spread through a herd and comprises an estimated 80% of antibiotic treatments. Kansas State University researchers are collecting data to improve understanding of how feedlot cattle are classified based on BRD risk. The data can be used to comprehensively assess health risks and interventions, and as a result, optimize health management strategies for specific cattle populations, improve animal well-being and encourage more efficient antimicrobial use.

Acoustic Monitoring to Support Mass Cattle Treatment Decisions

Year Awarded  2023

FFAR award amount   $50,000

Total award amount   $104,128

Location   Atlanta, GA

Matching Funders   Cactus Research, Ergense, Five Rivers Cattle Feeding, McDonald’s Corporation, Veterinary Research & Consulting Services

Grantee Institution   Ergense Inc.

The livestock industry is plagued by bovine respiratory disease (BRD), an infectious condition that can spread through a herd and comprises an estimated 80% of antibiotic treatments. The standard procedure for cattle arriving at a feedlot is to isolate and observe them, after which workers decide if the entire pen should receive antibiotic treatment based on various animal health factors. To reduce treatment subjectivity, this research is developing an audio monitoring technique that uses machine learning to analyze acoustic signatures of animal vocalizations to inform the BRD treatment decision.

Developing a model protocol for tracking antibiotic use & AMR surveillance across a large-scale commercial swine production system

Year Awarded  2023

FFAR award amount   $202,555

Total award amount   $405,111

Location   Pipestone, MN

Matching Funders   Pipestone, National Pork Board

Grantee Institution   Pipestone

The National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) is tracking antimicrobial resistance (AMR) data at the level of the meat case, the harvest facility and across cases of human foodborne illness; however, no such effort exists at the level of the swine farm. This project is developing a protocol to track antibiotic use across large-scale commercial swine production systems and compare it in real-time with its respective on-farm antibiotic use to enhance the marketability of pork, improve animal welfare and launch the US swine industry to the forefront of AMR surveillance globally.

Integrating genomics, milk spectrometry & microbial manipulations to mitigate enteric methane emissions from dairy cattle

Year Awarded  2023

FFAR award amount   $1,556,634

Total award amount   $3,301,496

Location   Madison, WI

Matching Funders   Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, ADM, the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB), Elanco, Genus plc, JBS USA, the National Dairy Herd Information Association, Nestlé and the New Zealand Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Research Centre (NZAGRC)

Grantee Institution   University of Wisconsin–Madison

Cows and other ruminant animals produce enteric methane as part of their natural digestive process. This methane is the single largest source of direct greenhouse gases in the beef and dairy sectors. This research is combining interventions that address selective breeding, data on milk composition, and rumen microbes to gain the necessary knowledge to inform the selective breeding of U.S. dairy cattle with lower emissions.

Hydrogen production and hydrogen utilization in the rumen of beef & dairy cattle: Key rumen microbiome measurements to understand mechanisms controlling methanogenesis & mitigating enteric methane emissions

Year Awarded  2023

FFAR award amount   $1,066,820

Total award amount   $3,221,254

Location   Champaign, IL

Matching Funders   Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy, ADM, the Council on Dairy Cattle Breeding (CDCB), Elanco, Genus plc, JBS USA, the National Dairy Herd Information Association, Nestlé, the New Zealand Agricultural Greenhouse Gas Research Centre (NZAGRC) and the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Grantee Institution   University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Cows and other ruminant animals produce enteric methane as part of their natural digestive process. Microorganisms in the rumen use hydrogen and carbon dioxide to produce large volumes of methane. This methane is the single largest source of direct greenhouse gases in the beef and dairy sectors. This project studies how diets and different additives affect hydrogen production and utilization in the rumen of both beef and dairy cattle and how these changes in hydrogen dynamics affect the amount of enteric methane produced.

Using sensors & psychological profile to increase compliance of wean to market barn biosecurity

Year Awarded  2023

Total award amount   $125,930

Location   St-Hyacinthe, QC

Program   Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Program

Matching Funders   Swine Health Information Center & Pork Checkoff

Grantee Institution   University of Montreal

One of the biggest farm biosecurity challenges is the enforcement of safe and hygienic behaviors from barn workers and visitors. To better understand biosecurity compliance, this research is using social and behavioral sciences to adapt interventions and establish improved biosecurity behaviors.

Development of an effective & practical biosecurity entrance system

Year Awarded  2023

Total award amount   $179,933

Location   Columbia, MO

Program   Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Program

Matching Funders   Swine Health Information Center & Pork Checkoff

Grantee Institution   University of Missouri

A common practice to minimize the introduction of disease in swine barns is for everyone entering a swine facility to use a shower-in and shower-out system. However, it is a challenge to enforce the use of these systems across all farm workers and personnel. This research is evaluating the effectiveness of an innovative, easy-to-use biosecurity-effective entry system for commercial pig farms to replace the laborious shower-in and shower-out system to provide a simplified, effective alternative for barn entry and exit.

Self-vaccinating pigs to save labor, improve efficacy & enhance biosecurity: Mhp, IAV, Ileitis & Erysipelas evaluations

Year Awarded  2023

Total award amount   $119,018

Location   Lubbock, TX

Program   Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Program

Matching Funders   Swine Health Information Center & Pork Checkoff

Grantee Institution   Texas Tech University

Pigs commonly receive vaccines by intramuscular injection, which requires significant skilled labor that is in short supply and costly to producers. This research is developing and testing the efficacy of an automated, self-administering, needle-free vaccination system for four common pathogens, which has the potential to offer producers a faster, less labor intensive and more effective way to vaccinate swine and improve overall barn biosecurity.

Comparison of a rail-mounted automated power washer to a commercial manual power washing crew in terms of cleanliness, manpower & water usage efficiency

Year Awarded  2023

Total award amount   $61,100

Location   Pipestone, MN

Program   Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Program

Matching Funders   Swine Health Information Center & Pork Checkoff

Grantee Institution   Pipestone

Barn washing is a critical biosecurity measure. However, the traditional use of commercial power washing crews who move their washing equipment from one farm to another can transfer pathogens from barn to barn, presenting a biosecurity risk. To establish improved barn washing protocols that could be managed onsite by producers, this research is testing a robotic washing system that reduces the labor needed from outsourced washing crews and, thereby, the risk of disease transmission.

Determining the economical & epidemiological benefit of cleaning & disinfecting market haul trailers within the U.S. swine industry

Year Awarded  2023

Total award amount   $28,875

Location   Mahomet, IL

Program   Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Program

Matching Funders   Swine Health Information Center & Pork Checkoff

Grantee Institution   Lowe Consulting, Ltd.

Trailers hauling pigs to market have the potential to transmit diseases. Yet, transportation vehicles are not always cleaned and disinfected to prevent contamination, thereby threatening wean-to-market biosecurity. This study is using modeling to determine the minimum number of transport vehicles that need to be decontaminated to stop specific pathogens from spreading.