SBIR-ARS Collaboration

A new collaboration between the USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) and the USDA's Agricultural Research Service (ARS) encourages SBIR applicants to license ARS technologies and be considered for a SBIR grant.

The relevant language in the SBIR's "Request for Application" states: "Additional factors that will be considered in the review process include whether an application involves a CRADA with a USDA laboratory, or a license to a USDA technology, or is a resubmission.  In the event that two or more applications are of approximately equal merit, the existence of a CRADA with a USDA laboratory or a license to a USDA technology will be an important consideration.  If one application is a resubmission, this will also be an important consideration." The SBIR Website can be found at:   http://www.nifa.usda.gov/fo/sbir.

A list of available technologies for licensing and CRADAs that may be considered as projects under the SBIR program can be found at the USDA Office of Technology Transfer (OTT) website http://dbnrrc.ars.usda.gov/business/docs.htm?docid=763&page=6.  Each of these technologies would be appropriate for one of the topic areas in section 8.0 of this program solicitation.  If an applicant is interested in proposing a research project that addresses one of these technologies, the applicant should contact the OTT office at 301-504-6905 or /business/Docs.htm?docid=763 to discuss the possibility of signing a licensing agreement and possibly also a CRADA agreement prior to submitting the proposal to the SBIR program.