Mission:
The Northeast Area (NEA) of Agricultural Research Service encompasses 15 research centers and laboratories and 9 worksites located in 13 northeastern and Atlantic states from Maine to Tennessee and the District of Columbia. These include the U.S. National Arboretum in Washington D.C., the Eastern Regional Research Center in Philadelphia, PA, the Robert C. Holey Center on Agriculture and Health in Ithaca, NY, and Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC) in Maryland, the largest and most comprehensive agricultural research complex in the world. The noteworthy accomplishments of the scientists at NEA’s centers and laboratories have made them international leaders in their respective scientific fields. The mission of the NEA is to conduct innovative, fundamental and applied scientific research to develop and transfer solutions that address agricultural and human health problems of high national priority such as: 1) maintaining and improving the plentiful supply of healthful and safe food, fiber, bioenergy and agriculture-derived value-added products to all Americans; 2) protecting and enhancing the natural resource base and the environment; 3) providing innovative technology to enhance economic opportunities for rural citizens, communities, and the society as a whole; and 4) assuring a competitive position of American agriculture in the global economy. The nutritional needs of the Americans are assessed at the Beltsville Human Nutrition Research Center as well as Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutritional Research Center on Aging at Tufts in Boston, MA. The NEA programs widely leverage their resources by closely collaborating with other federal research agencies, the U.S. land-grant, state, and private universities as well as foreign universities and scientific research organizations the world over.