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FFAR and Alliance for Science Expand Gene Editing Communications

Year Awarded  2021

FFAR award amount   $189,794

Total award amount   $760,271

Location   Ithaca, NY

Matching Funders   Cornell Alliance for Science

Grantee Institution   Cornell University

FFAR invests in a range of research technologies, including projects that use biotechnology and gene editing to make agriculture more sustainable, protect biodiversity and ensure that the world has sufficient food to feed a growing population. Through this award, the Alliance for Science, a global communications initiative, is amplifying FFAR-funded research and programs.

CRISPR-Combo Allows Gene Editing and Culture Regeneration

Year Awarded  2021

FFAR award amount   $664,000

Total award amount   $739,000

Location   College Park, MD

Program   Accelerated Crop Breeding

Matching Funders   BASF

Grantee Institution   University of Maryland

While gene editing technology has improved crop breeding and adaptation, the process of regrowing a plant from edited cells is costly, lengthy and unpredictable. Many popular crops are difficult to regenerate with existing methods. Researchers at the University of Maryland are developing a CRISPR-Combo system that will use CRISPR gene editing technology to kick-start the regeneration process.

Scaling Crops for Sustainable Water Management: Building Supply Chains

Year Awarded  2021

FFAR award amount   $1,997,454

Total award amount   $3,997,423

Location   Minneapolis, MN

Matching Funders   Agriculture Utilization Research Institute, Cargill, Friends of the Mississippi River, Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources, McKnight Foundation, Minnesota Department of Agriculture, NORI, The Land Institute, Walton Family Foundation

Grantee Institution   University of Minnesota

Summer crops such as wheat, rice, and corn can be profitable for farmers, but post-harvest farmland is unproductive for several months during the off-season. Fallow land can accumulate a variety of water-related challenges, including soil nutrient loss and erosion and precipitation runoff. However, continuous living cover crops can prevent these challenges and maintain land in the off-seasons. The University of Minnesota is developing models for sustainable supply chains that create markets for crops farmers can grow between seasons.

FFAR Grant Uses Corn Protein to Improve Meat Alternatives

Capitalizing on the Unique Viscoelastic Properties of Corn Zein for A New Commercial Plant-Based Protein

Year Awarded  2021

FFAR award amount   $387,556

Total award amount   $387,556

Location   West Lafayette, IN

Program   Plant Protein Enhancement Project

Matching Funders   Open Philanthropy

Grantee Institution   Purdue University

Plant-based protein alternatives are a rapidly expanding market. Soy and pea proteins can closely replicate the texture of meats, but they lack the chewy quality of meat, known as viscoelasticity, which creates a tender bite. Researchers at Purdue University are studying the viscoelasticity of a corn protein, zein, to develop a new commercial meat substitute.

Heavy Metal and Chocolate: Not the Best Pairing  

Portrait of Zachary Dashner.

Zachary Dashner

2018-2021 FFAR Fellow

FFAR Grant Enhances Protein Content in Peas

FFAR Grant Supports Climate Smart Beef and Dairy Production

FFAR Grant Improves Chickpeas’ Protein Content & Quality

Fast Tracking Climate Solutions from Global Germplasm Banks

Year Awarded  2021

FFAR award amount   $5,000,000

Total award amount   $11,500,000

Location   Texcoco, Mexico

Matching Funders   Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Grantee Institution   CGIAR

The most dangerous impact of climate change is the disruption of global agriculture and food systems through disasters such as drought, heat and flooding. These disruptions, including decreased agricultural production and reduced harvests, are hardest on the approximately half a billion smallholder farmers living on less than two dollars a day. This initiative, led by CGIAR, advances transformative approaches to expand the use of genetic diversity from germplasm banks. The research ultimately aims to develop new climate-smart crop varieties for millions of smallholder farmers worldwide.