Woman in white lab coat and protective eyewear in a research lab at a computer with a virus on the screen Woman in white lab coat and protective eyewear in a research lab at a computer with a virus on the screen

H5N1 Risk to Swine Research Program

Proactively enhancing prevention, preparedness, mitigation and response capabilities for H5N1 influenza in the U.S. swine herd.
Proactively enhancing prevention, preparedness, mitigation and response capabilities for H5N1 influenza in the U.S. swine herd.

Program Contact

Dr. Jasmine Bruno
jbruno@foundationfar.org

Partnerships & Development Contact

Lauren Hershey
lhershey@foundationfar.org

Proposals accepted through December 31, 2024

This recent expansion of H5N1 into novel livestock species and resulting in novel clinical presentation warrants the need for a close investigation of this virus and its potential for incursion into U.S. commercial swine herds.

Critical research investments are necessary to prevent H5N1 incursion, ensure rapid and accurate detection of H5N1, inform stakeholder response, mitigate production losses on farm, identify effective control measures and develop clear messaging to consumers on the safety of pork.

SHIC/FFAR/NPB are inviting proposal submissions from qualified researchers for funding consideration to address H5N1 Risk to Swine Research Program priorities described in the detailed Request for Research Proposals (RFP) on the SHIC website.

H5N1 Risk to Swine Research Program Priorities

  1. Vaccines
  2. Clinical Presentation
  3. Mammary Transmission
  4. Surveillance
  5. Introduction Risks
  6. Caretakers
  7. Biosecurity
  8. Pork Safety
  9. Production impact
  10. Pig Movements

Collaborative projects that include the pork industry, allied industry, dairy or poultry industries, academic institutions and/or public/private partnerships are highly encouraged. Projects that demonstrate the most urgent and timeliness of completion, provide the greatest value to pork producers, and show efficient use of funds will be prioritized for funding. Projects are requested to be completed within a 12–18-month period with sufficient justification required for extended project duration.

Individual awards are capped at $250,000, but proposals may exceed the cap if sufficient justification is provided. Matching funds are encouraged but not required; the $250K cap applies to only those funds requested from SHIC/FFAR/NPB. All projects should strive to have a high impact, show value to pork producers and have pork industry-wide benefit.

View FFAR/SHIC Webinar Recording

Additional FFAR collaborations with SHIC include a comprehensive approach to enhancing Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity, funded in partnership with the Pork Checkoff, and proactive investigations to prevent and prepare for a potential Japanese encephalitis virus incursion. This Oct. 22, 2024, webinar included representatives from FFAR and SHIC discussing the benefits of collaborative approaches to protect the U.S. swine herd from emerging disease threats.

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The Latest

Insights

Our Insights highlight unique perspectives from across the food and agriculture community.

See all Insights

The Aim For Healthy, Productive & Environmentally Friendly, Southeastern Beef Calves

Federico Tarnonsky

FFAR Fellow (2022-2025), University of Florida

Time Teaches Biosecurity Importance

Kevin Schulz

Kevin Schulz

Editor, The Farmer/Farm Progress

Greener Cattle Initiative is Game Changer for Dairy’s Future

Dr. Juan Tricarico

Dr. Juan Tricarico

Senior Vice President, Environmental Research, Dairy Management Inc.

Reducing Enteric Methane Emissions from Dairy Cattle

Francisco Penagaricano headshot

Dr. Francisco Peñagaricano and Dr. Guillermo Martinez Boggio

Let’s Raise a Glass on National Milk Day to the Power of Agriculture Research

Krysta Harden headshot

Krysta Harden

President and CEO U.S. Dairy Export Council

Building Team Chemistry: The Bigger Picture Behind Cows & Climate

Conor McCabe headshot

Conor McCabe

Animal Biology Graduate Student, UC Davis

Insight on Livestock Methane Mitigation

Dr. Rod Mackie

Dr. Rod Mackie, Professor, Department of Animal Sciences at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 

Champaign, IL

Indigenous Farmers are Leading a “New Green Revolution” Focused on Hemp

James DeDecker, Director, Michigan State University – Upper Peninsula Research and Extension Center Mary Donner, Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians – Ziibimijwang Farm Executive Director and Tribal Citizen

FFAR Vet Student Fellow Research Spotlight

Anna Schaubeck

2021 FFAR Veterinary Student Research Fellow

Celebrating Innovation on National Egg Day

Paul Montgomery

Paul Montgomery

Director of Communications, United Egg Producers

Going Nuts: Nut Crops as Climate Resilient Protein Alternatives for the Future

Matt Davis

University of California, Davis

How Heat Stress Impacts Swine Health

FFAR Fellow, Lauren Anderson

North Carolina State University

Building Tools for Plant Genome Editing

FFAR Fellow, Simon Sretenovic

University of Maryland, College Park

Tackling Malnutrition with Biofortification

Aichatou Djibo Waziri

Washington State University

Wheat: already delicious and now nutritious

Addison Carroll

FFAR Fellow

Dusting the Soil for Fungus-Prints: Spinach Seed Production and One of its Greatest Threats

Alex Batson

Washington State University

A day on the Battlefield: Searching for Perennial defenses in wild places

Kelsey Peterson

2019-2022 FFAR Fellow

Heavy Metal and Chocolate: Not the Best Pairing  

Zachary Dashner

2018-2021 FFAR Fellow

Dairy Cattle Metabolic Capacity: Milking It for all It’s Worth

Linda Beckett

2019-2022 FFAR Fellow

News

The latest news and updates from FFAR.

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SHIC, FFAR & Pork Checkoff Announce H5N1 Risk to Swine Research Program & RFP

ROAR Funding Protects Strawberries from Dangerous Pathogen

FFAR Aims to Help Farmers Manage Manure More Sustainably & Profitably

Hemp Research Consortium Grant Examines Biopesticides for Hemp Treatment

Seeding Solutions Grant Developing Tomato Resistance to Parasitic Weed

Crops of the Future Grant Improves Stress Tolerance in Carrots

ICASA Award Addresses Antimicrobial Stewardship for Bovine Respiratory Disease

Swine Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Program Funds Additional Research

FFAR Names Sixth Cohort of Veterinary Fellows

U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef & FFAR Announce Focus Group Series to Develop Sustainable Beef Research Roadmap

FFAR-Funded Research to Prevent African Swine Fever Virus

Greener Cattle Initiative Opens Call for Enteric Methane Emission Research

FFAR & AAVMC Open Applications for 2024 FFAR Vet Fellows

Japanese Encephalitis Virus Research Protects U.S. Swine

FFAR & Open Philanthropy Announce Egg-Tech Prize Finalists

ICASA Grants Seek to Address Liver Abscess Formation in Cattle

Developing Smart Breeding Methods to Increase Crop Resilience

ICASA Awards Grants to Address Antimicrobial Resistance in Cattle & Swine

Scientists Unite to Combat Fusarium Wilt in Cotton

Increasing Drought Tolerance in Rice

Breakthroughs

Tools, technologies and strategies from the research we fund.

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Unlocking Genetic Heat Tolerance in Cattle

Breakthrough for Precision Bred Adaptation of Elite Taurine Breeds of Beef & Dairy Cattle

Accelerating Crop Development with Improved Haploid Fertility

Breakthrough for Accelerated Development of Crops of the Future

Radiography could transform poultry breeding

Breakthrough for FFAR Awards $1.4 Million to Purdue University, University of California, Davis and University of Edinburgh Researchers to Improve Health and Productivity of Egg-Laying Hens

Research Pinpoints Why Dairy Cows Produce Less Milk in Warm Weather and Develops Nutrition-Based Solution

Breakthrough for FFAR Grant Helps Heat-Stressed Dairy Cows Weather Increasing Temperatures

Getting to the Root of the Problem: Fastidious Pathogens

Breakthrough for A Novel Bioassay for Culturing and Characterizing Fastidious Phytopathogens

Feed Additives Stop Viral Disease Spread, Researchers Find

Breakthrough for FFAR-Funded Research Finds Feed Additives Stop the Spread of Viral Diseases

Initial Successes in Ending Surgical Castration of Swine

Breakthrough for FFAR Awards $500,000 Grant to Improve Swine Health and Well-Being