Summary
Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to create special research centers for farming and a grant program to help protect the nation's food supply from threats.
What problem does this solve?
Current agricultural research can be spread out and may not focus on modern dangers like cyberattacks or other major disasters. This bill creates focused research centers and a grant program to better coordinate efforts and protect the food system.
Who does this affect?
- Agricultural universities and researchers
- Farmers and ranchers
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
What does this bill do?
Establishes centers of excellence for agriculture
Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to recognize at least one special research center for various topics, such as aquaculture, biosecurity, and digital farming.
Creates a new food protection grant program
Sets up a grant program for colleges, state agencies, and labs to support research and training that protects the U.S. food system from attacks and other major threats.
Authorizes funding for new programs
Approves $10 million per year from 2026 through 2030 for the centers of excellence, and another $10 million per year for the same period for the food protection grants.
Defines specific areas of research focus
Lists key topics for the centers, including cybersecurity, biotechnology, crop production, food quality, foreign animal diseases, and forestry.
Sets reporting rules for the centers
Requires the Secretary of Agriculture to send a yearly report to Congress detailing the projects, funding, and results from each center of excellence.
Expands the number of existing research centers
Increases the number of previously authorized research centers from 3 to 8 and adds new focus areas like forest health and rural studies.
Prohibits using funds for construction
States that money for the centers of excellence cannot be used to build new buildings or make major changes to existing ones.
What is the real world impact?
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Improves and coordinates agricultural research
Creates specialized centers to focus on key areas like biosecurity, new farming technology, and food quality. This helps prevent different groups from doing the same work and makes research more effective.
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Modernizes the U.S. agriculture industry
Focuses on digital agriculture, artificial intelligence, and biotechnology. This pushes the farming industry to use new technologies to stay competitive and productive.
When does this start?
The bill outlines several timelines, with funding for new programs set to begin in fiscal year 2026.
Funding authorization for new programs
Authorizes $10 million for the centers of excellence and $10 million for the grant program for each fiscal year from 2026 through 2030.
Annual report to congress
The Secretary of Agriculture must submit the first report on the centers no later than one year after the bill becomes law, and every year after that.
Center of excellence award duration
Each center of excellence will be recognized for a five-year period, with an option to renew for one additional five-year period.