St. Paul, Minnesota, USA
March 10, 2023
Alfalfa researchers from Georgia to Idaho were the beneficiaries of the National Alfalfa & Forage Alliance’s (NAFA) recent round of research funding through the U.S. Alfalfa Farmer Research Initiative (USAFRI), a farmer-funded investment in alfalfa-related research better known as the Alfalfa Checkoff.
“With all of the impressive projects we received in response to our request for proposals, our Review Committee certainly had their work cut out for them,” said Beth Nelson, NAFA President. “We were really pleased with the projects that were approved and believe they hold the greatest potential for positively impacting alfalfa farmers.”
NAFA’s USAFRI request for proposals generated 16 research projects from a broad geographic area, stretching from California to Pennsylvania, demonstrating the continued demand among researchers for alfalfa-related research funding. Proposals addressed a wide range of topics intended to drive innovation and profitability in the alfalfa industry - from integrated pest management and new uses to utility of mechanical processing and herbicide options for weed control. Research projects in Georgia, Idaho, Minnesota, and Montana were funded. They include:
- Jennifer Tucker, University of Georgia
- Herbicide Options for Weed Burndown in Alfalfa
- Albert Adjesiwor, University of Idaho
- Alfalfa-Grass Mixtures: Evaluating Trade-Offs in Forage Quality, Productivity, and Field Carbon Balance
- Joshua Gamble & Allison Duff, USDA-Agricultural Research Service – St. Paul
- Controlling Adult Alfalfa Weevils: A Multi-State University/Industry Collaboration
- Kevin Wanner, Montana State University
Project objectives can be viewed on the NAFA website (alfalfa.org).
In addition to checkoff funding, the committee chose four additional projects to be funded through USDA’s Agricultural Research Service. Those projects include:
- Developing Alfalfa Varieties for a Water-Challenged Future
- Charles Brummer, University of California-Davis
- Evaluation of Methane Reduction Potential and Forage Quality in Conventional and Low-Lignin Variants of Alfalfa and Corn Silage
- Isaac Salfer, University of Minnesota
- Innovative Uses for Alfalfa Biomass: A Path to New Income for Farmers
- Srinivas Janaswamy, South Dakota State University
- The Utility of Mechanical Processing to Decouple Alfalfa Yield from Digestibiltity
- Matt Digman, Luis Ferraretto, Kevin Shinners, University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Ken Kalscheur, U.S. Dairy Forage Research Center
Project funding was determined by a NAFA panel which reviewed, scored, and discussed proposals to determine which best met NAFA’s established research priorities, including: Increase yield potential of alfalfa through genetics, biotechnology, and crop management; research and outreach of alfalfa environmental services; encourage market development through exploration of innovative new uses; improve alfalfa forage quality and analysis through genetics, harvest management, storage systems, and sampling techniques; and NAFA Publications Updates. Proposals were scored on methodology and analytical approaches; industry need; cost effectiveness; and partnerships.
NAFA strongly encourages alfalfa farmers to patronize checkoff-participating alfalfa seed brands to support the U.S. Alfalfa Farmer Research Initiative. A current list of checkoff participating marketers can be found at alfalfa.org. (If your favorite alfalfa brand is not on the list, contact NAFA at 651.484.3888 for information on how a seed marketer can become a participating brand.)
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