NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF FOOD
AND AGRICULTURE
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF
AGRICULTURE
AGRICULTURE AND FOOD
RESEARCH INITIATIVE
COMPETITIVE GRANTS PROGRAM
FOUNDATIONAL PROGRAM
INITIAL ANNOUNCEMENT
CATALOG OF FEDERAL DOMESTIC
ASSISTANCE: This program is listed in
the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) under 10.310.
DATES: Applications must be submitted via Grants.gov by 5:00
p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the deadline date indicated in the Program Area
Descriptions section beginning in Part I, C. See Part
IV, F “Other Submission Requirements” for a full description of what it means
to submit an application on time. Applications received after the deadline will
normally not be considered for funding. Comments regarding this request for
applications (RFA) are requested within six months from the issuance of this
notice. Comments received after this date will be considered to the extent
practicable.
STAKEHOLDER INPUT: The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is requesting comments regarding this RFA from any
interested party. These comments will be considered in the development of the
next RFA for the program, if applicable, and will be used to meet the
requirements of section 103(c)(2) of the Agricultural Research, Extension, and
Education Reform Act of 1998 (7 U.S.C. 7613(c)(2)). This section requires the
Secretary to solicit and consider input on a current RFA from persons who
conduct or use agricultural research, education, and extension for use in
formulating future RFAs for competitive programs. Written stakeholder comments
directed toward this RFA should be submitted in accordance with the deadline
set forth in the DATES portion of this notice.
Written stakeholder comments
should be submitted by mail to: Policy and Oversight Division; Office of Grants
and Financial Management; National Institute of Food and Agriculture; USDA;
STOP 2299; 1400 Independence Avenue, SW; Washington, DC 20250-2299; or via
e-mail to: Policy@nifa.usda.gov
(This e-mail address is intended only for
receiving comments regarding this RFA and not for requesting information or
forms). In your comments, please state that you are responding to the
Agriculture and Food Research Initiative Foundational Program RFA. Stakeholder
comments received in response to the fiscal year (FY) 2011 Foundational RFA and
FY 2012 Challenge Area RFAs are discussed in Part I, B. of this RFA.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) established
the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) under which the Secretary
of Agriculture may make competitive grants for fundamental and applied
research, education, and extension to address food and agricultural sciences
(as defined under section 1404 of the National Agricultural Research,
Extension, and Teaching Policy Act of 1977 (NARETPA) (7 U.S.C. 3103)), as
amended, in six priority areas. The six priority areas include: 1) plant health
and production and plant products; 2) animal health and production and animal
products; 3) food safety, nutrition, and health; 4) renewable energy, natural
resources, and environment; 5) agriculture systems and technology; and 6)
agriculture economics and rural communities.
NOTE: This RFA is
being released prior to the passage of an Appropriations Act for FY 2013.
Enactment of an Appropriations Act may affect the overall level of funding for
the AFRI program. Therefore, NIFA reserves the right to amend, delete, or alter
any programs outlined in this RFA.
In FY 2013, subject to
availability of funds, approximately $264 million will be available to support
the AFRI program. Of this amount, no less than 30 percent will be made
available to fund integrated research, education, and extension programs.
For FY 2013, subject to
availability of funds, it is anticipated that approximately $136 million will
be made available to support new awards within the AFRI Foundational Program
Area. This RFA focuses on building a foundation of knowledge in fundamental and
applied food and agricultural sciences critical for solving current and future
societal challenges.
Project
types supported by AFRI within this RFA include single-function Research
Projects, multi-function Integrated Projects, and Food and Agricultural Science
Enhancement (FASE) Grants. This RFA identifies research and integrated program
objectives, eligibility criteria, and matching requirements for each project
type.
Letter of Intent Deadline –
November 19, 2012 (5:00 p.m. ET)
Program Area e-mail for
Submission of Letter of Intent – foodnutrition@nifa.usda.gov
Application Deadline – February 6, 2013 (5:00 p.m. ET)
Program Area Priorities –
Applicants must address at least one of the following:
1. Physical and Molecular
Mechanisms of Food Contamination
Program Area Priority Code
– A1331
Program Area Priority
Contact – Dr. Jeanette Thurston (202)
720-7166 or jthurston@nifa.usda.gov
• Elucidate physical and/or
molecular mechanisms that allow food-borne pathogens, chemicals, and/or
engineered nanoparticles to attach onto and/or internalize into fresh and
fresh-cut produce, including nuts; or
• Develop and validate novel
concentration and purification methods for the rapid, low-cost, and efficient
isolation of human pathogens from foods. Projects that include the development
and validation of methods which are effective in multiple food matrices and for
multiple pathogens are preferred.
2. Function and Efficacy of
Nutrients
Program Area Priority Code
– A1341
Program Area Priority
Contacts – Dr. Ram Rao (202) 401-6010 or rrao@nifa.usda.gov
and Dr. Deirdra Chester (202)
401-5178 or dnchester@nifa.usda.gov.
Improve function and efficacy
of foods, nutrients and/or other dietary bioactive components in promoting
health.
• Applications should focus on
the role of bioactive components in food in preventing inflammation or
promoting gastrointestinal health. Justification must be provided for the
relationship of the component(s) being studied to human health outcomes.
Priority will be given to projects that use a whole foods approach or that
address health effects of a combination of two or more bioactive components
found in food.
3. Improving Food Quality
Program Area Priority Code
– A1361
Program Area Priority
Contacts – Dr. Ram Rao (202) 401-6010 or rrao@nifa.usda.gov and
Dr. Jodi Williams (202)
720-6145 or jwilliams@nifa.usda.gov
• Understanding the physical, chemical,
and biological properties of foods and food ingredients and applying
engineering principles, and advanced processing and packaging technologies to
improve the nutrition, health, safety, shelf-life, convenience, economic and/or
sensory attributes of foods.