Feb. 8, 2016 – Three scientific societies praise the Obama administration’s commitment to doubling funding for the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). “We need cutting-edge science to meet 21st century challenges in public health, food production, national security, and global competitiveness,” says Ellen Bergfeld.

The American Society of Agronomy (ASA), Crop Science Society of America (CSSA), and the Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) made these comments after learning of the budget planned for the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI). Bergfeld is the CEO of ASA, CSSA, and SSSA.

In a February 3 announcement, Secretary Vilsack highlighted the administration’s fiscal year 2017 proposal to invest $700 million in AFRI. This is the full amount authorized by Congress in the 2008 Farm Bill. AFRI is currently funded at $350 million.

“We hope Congress meets the President’s challenge to double AFRI funding,” says Harold van Es, President of SSSA. “We all benefit from more research that is helping to bring solutions to the food, agriculture, and natural resource challenges facing us today and into the future.”

“A fully-funded AFRI will attract the future generation of scientists and advance innovations benefiting all Americans,” says Bergfeld.

Food, agriculture, and natural resources research has been woefully underfunded, according to the societies. Every year, over half of AFRI’s research grant proposals rated as highly innovative go unfunded due to budget constraints within the agency. In FY 2014, only $270 million of the $1.1 billion in projects recommended for funding by AFRI’s review panels received support.