On March 17, the United States Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced that it has invested over $8.5 million in funding for 29 research and extension grants.
"These grants are part of NIFA's Agriculture and Food Research Initiative and include some projects co-funded by commodity boards through a Farm Bill provision by the American Pulse Association and The Cotton Board,” the organization stated in a news release.
Out of the 29 funded projects, two of them are geared towards the hemp industry.
According to the release, nearly $300,000 will be awarded to Colorado State University for "Diversity, Distribution and Host Resistance to Emerging Viruses and Viroids of Hemp."
Additionally, the NIFA will also provide nearly $300,000 to Oregon State University for "Feeding Spent Hemp Biomass to Cattle: Cannabinoid Residuals, Animal Health, and Product Quality."
The funding will help advance and provide solutions to essential problems in U.S. agriculture, the release states.
"Critical problems impede efficient food and agricultural systems at local, regional and national scales," said NIFA Director Carrie Castille. "Work supported by this federal investment enables partnerships and close coordination across the entire food and agriculture spectrum on efforts to yield practices that meet pressing needs."
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