Posted June 24, 2014
Board of
directors to be named for the Foundation
for Food and Agriculture Research, which was created by Congress in last
year’s farm bill, according to a Roll Call article by Ellyn Ferguson available here.
The
program is intended to bring funds into scientific study that made the U.S. an
“agricultural powerhouse.”
The $200
million bill authorized mandatory spending to attract matching amounts from the
private sector to finance research. Seven areas of research interest were laid
out by Congress, including plant and animal health, food safety, nutrition, and
health and renewable energy.
Bill
Gates, co-chairman of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, praised the bill
and stated that he looked forward to working with its grantees.
The first
test for the foundation will be the formation of its board members, but eight
directors will be named from recommendations by the National Academy of Sciences and
seven will be named from 200 industry nominees.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, along with the
department’s three top research officials and a representative from the
National Science Foundation, will select board members that balance the
views of different sectors in U.S. agriculture. The officials are expected to finalize
their decisions in the one to two months.
For more information on farm bills, please visit the
National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
