Agricultural Research Service

Agricultural Research Service
Logo of the Agricultural Research Service
Agency overview
Formed November 2, 1953 (1953-11-02)
Jurisdiction United States federal government
Headquarters Washington, D.C.
Employees 7,379 employees (September 2017)[1]
Annual budget $1.1 billion (FY14)
Agency executive
Parent agency United States Department of Agriculture
Website www.ars.usda.gov
Footnotes
[2]

The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).[3] ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area. ARS is charged with extending the nation's scientific knowledge and solving agricultural problems through its four national program areas: nutrition, food safety and quality; animal production and protection; natural resources and sustainable agricultural systems; and crop production and protection. ARS research focuses on solving problems affecting Americans every day.[3] The ARS Headquarters is located in the Jamie L. Whitten Building on Independence Avenue in Washington DC and the Headquarters staff is located at the George Washington Carver Center (GWCC) in Beltsville, Maryland.[4] For 2018, its budget was $1.2 billion.[5]

Mission

ARS conducts scientific research for the American public. Their main focus is on research to develop solutions to agricultural problems and provide information access and dissemination to:

  • ensure high quality, safe food and other agricultural products,
  • assess the nutritional needs of Americans,
  • sustain a competitive agricultural economy,
  • enhance the natural resource base and the environment, and
  • provide economic opportunities to rural citizens, communities, and society as a whole.[3]

ARS research complements the work of state colleges and universities, agricultural experiment stations, other federal and state agencies, and the private sector. ARS research may often focus on regional issues that have national implications, and where there is a clear federal role. ARS also provides information on its research results to USDA action and regulatory agencies and to several other federal regulatory agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration and the United States Environmental Protection Agency.[6][3]

ARS disseminates much of its research results through scientific journals, technical publications, Agricultural Research magazine,[7] and other forums. Information is also distributed through ARS's National Agricultural Library (NAL).[3] ARS has more than 150 librarians and other information specialists who work at two NAL locations—the Abraham Lincoln Building in Beltsville, Maryland; and the DC Reference Center in Washington, D.C. NAL provides reference and information services, document delivery, interlibrary loan and interlibrary borrowing services to a variety of audiences.[8]

Research centers

ARS supports more than 2,000 scientists and post docs working on approximately 690 research projects within 15 National Programs at more than 90 research locations.[3] The ARS is divided into 5 geographic areas: Midwest Area, Northeast Area, Pacific West Area, Plains Area, and Southeast Area.[9] ARS has five major regional research centers: the Western Regional Research Center (WRRC) in Albany, California; the Southern Regional Research Center (SRRC) in New Orleans, Louisiana; the National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research (NCAUR) in Peoria, Illinois; and the Eastern Regional Research Center (ERRC) in Wyndmoor, Pennsylvania. The research centers focus on innovation in agricultural practices, pest control, health, and nutrition among other things. Work at these facilities has given life to numerous products, processes, and technologies.[10][11][12][13] The ARS also offers the Culture Collection, which is the largest public collection of microorganisms in the world, containing approximately 93,000 strains of bacteria and fungi. The ARS Culture Collection is housed at Northern Regional Research Laboratory (NRRL)[14] ARS' Henry A. Wallace Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC) in Beltsville, Maryland, is the world's largest agricultural research complex.[15] ARS operates the U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory in Fort Pierce, Florida,[16] and the U.S. National Poultry Research Center in Athens, Georgia.[17] ARS also has six major human nutrition research centers that focus on solving a wide spectrum of human nutrition questions by providing authoritative, peer-reviewed, science-based evidence.[18] The centers are located in Arkansas, Maryland, Texas, North Dakota, Massachusetts, and California. ARS scientists at these centers study the role of food and dietary components in human health from conception to advanced age.[18]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Data, Analysis & Documentation:Raw Datasets". U.S. Office of Personnel Management. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  2. ↑ "Agricultural Research Service". US Department of Agriculture.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "About ARS : USDA ARS". www.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  4. ↑ "Headquarters Information: USDA ARS". Agricultural Research Service web site. US Department of Agriculture. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  5. ↑ "Advocates celebrate funding bump for USDA-funded research". Science. AAAS. 2018-03-23. doi:10.1126/science.aat6839. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  6. ↑ "Business : USDA ARS". www.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  7. ↑ "USDA ARS Online Magazine". agresearchmag.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  8. ↑ "About | National Agricultural Library | USDA". www.nal.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  9. ↑ "Find A Location : USDA ARS". www.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  10. ↑ "Eastern Regional Research Center : USDA ARS". www.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  11. ↑ "Regional Biomass Research Centers : USDA ARS". www.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  12. ↑ "USDA ARS Online Magazine Southern Regional Research Center, New Orleans, Louisiana". agresearchmag.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  13. ↑ "Children's Nutrition Research Center". Baylor College of Medicine. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  14. ↑ "NRRL culture collection". Archived from the original on 2015-02-05. Retrieved 2012-02-12.
  15. ↑ "Beltsville Agricultural Research Center: USDA ARS Online Magazine Vol. 49, No. 10". agresearchmag.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  16. ↑ "U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory : USDA ARS". www.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  17. ↑ "U.S. National Poultry Research Center : USDA ARS". www.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.
  18. 1 2 "Human Nutrition Research : USDA ARS". www.ars.usda.gov. Retrieved 2018-04-13.

Sources

  • "Agricultural Research Service". Archived from the original on October 14, 2004. Retrieved 7 October 2005.
  • "Image gallery". Agricultural Research Service. Archived from the original on 2005-10-06. Retrieved 7 October 2005. - An online catalog from the Agricultural Research Service Information Staff.
  • "Western Regional Research Center". Archived from the original on 1 September 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  • "Southern Regional Research Center". Archived from the original on 26 August 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  • "National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research". Archived from the original on 31 August 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  • "Eastern Regional Research Center". Archived from the original on 3 September 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  • "ARS Human Nutrition Research". Archived from the original on 2 September 2009. Retrieved 1 September 2009.
  • "National Agricultural Library". Archived from the original on 16 November 2008. Retrieved 19 November 2008.
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