Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI)

The Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) awards Research, Education, Extension, and Integrated grants to improve rural economies, alleviate the impacts of pests and diseases, increase food and agriculture profitability, stimulate the bioeconomy, maintain long-term production capability, increase water efficiency, ensure food safety and nutritional quality, enhance human nutrition, and train the next generation of the food and agricultural workforce.

AFRI funds both single- and multifunction research, education, and extension grants that address key problems of national, regional, and multistate importance. AFRI-funded projects sustain all components of agriculture, including farm efficiency and profitability, ranching, bioenergy, forestry, aquaculture, rural communities and entrepreneurship, human nutrition, food safety, biotechnology, and conventional breeding. These projects also create jobs and help develop the next generation of agriculture and food scientists.

AFRI-funded integrated projects must include at least two of the three functions of agriculture knowledge – research, education, and extension/outreach – to ensure delivery of science-based knowledge to people, allowing them to make informed practical decisions.

This initiative supports integrated and non-integrated programs. Please refer to Part III, A of the current Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Request for Applications for the complete eligibility requirements.

Applications are subjected to a system of peer and merit review in accordance with section 103 of the Agricultural Research, Extension and Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7613) by a panel of qualified scientists and other appropriate persons who are specialists in the field covered by the proposal. Within the limit of funds available for such purpose, the NIFA Authorized Departmental Officer (ADO) shall make grants to those responsible, eligible applicants whose applications are judged most meritorious under the procedures set forth in the NOFO. Reviewers will be selected based upon training and experience in relevant scientific, extension, or education fields, taking into account the following factors: (a) The level of relevant formal scientific, technical education, or extension experience of the individual, as well as the extent to which an individual is engaged in relevant research, education, or extension activities; (b) the need to include as reviewers experts from various areas of specialization within relevant scientific, education, or extension fields; (c) the need to include as reviewers other experts (e.g., producers, range or forest managers/operators, and consumers) who can assess relevance of the applications to targeted audiences and to program needs; (d) the need to include as reviewers experts from a variety of organizational types (e.g., colleges, universities, industry, state and Federal agencies, private profit and non-profit organizations) and geographic locations; (e) the need to maintain a balanced composition of reviewers with regard to minority and female representation and an equitable age distribution; and (f) the need to include reviewers who can judge the effective usefulness to producers and the general public of each application. Evaluation Criteria will be delineated in the Competitive Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO).