Erin McGuire, a former lab director at UC-Davis, faced devastating layoffs when her lab's funding was cut by the U.S. government. Despite years of work on drought-resistant crops and cooling techniques for produce, a stop work order halted her team's research just before crucial data collection. Recent USDA data indicates a significant decline in agricultural research funding, jeopardizing innovation vital for farmers, scientists, and consumers. Increased investment in agricultural research is essential to enhance crop resilience against climate impacts.
The U.S. needs more publicly funded research and development on agriculture to offset the effects of climate change, according to a paper out in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences this month.
If scientists have reliable backing, they can keep improving crop varieties to better withstand perilous weather conditions like droughts or floods.
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