Location: National Programs
Project Number: 0500-00008-001-000-D
Project Type: In-House Appropriated
Start Date: Oct 1, 2022
End Date: Sep 30, 2027
Objective:
1) Provide flexible funding that enables USDA/ARS to rapidly mobilize international research assets and its inter-locational research capacity to identify, characterize, and/or control newly-emerging virulent diseases and pests of cocoa, coffee, or alternative tropical crops.
2) Support high-priority international genetic resource and quarantine infrastructure and genetics, genomics and breeding research projects for cocoa, coffee, and alternative tropical crops conducted jointly by ARS, national and international agricultural research centers, especially in the tropics.
Approach:
Transboundary, international approaches are essential because the focal crops are adapted to the tropics. The agricultural problems are of such complexity, magnitude, scope, and urgency that they require the combined research capacity of many nations and institutions. Decisions regarding cooperative, contract funding are reached through frequent assessments of national and international research and infrastructural priorities, in consultation with U. S. government and industry partners, and international research cooperators. Funding is devoted particularly to securing access to genetic resources not available in the U. S., and leveraging research capacity - particularly from multiple international tropical institutions--absent from or inadequate in ARS.
