COLSA hosted Sonny Ramaswamy, director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (USDA NIFA), at a town hall-style meeting at UNH’s Woodman Horticultural Farm recently.

In attendance were many of COLSA’s faculty, students, and staff; UNH senior vice provost for research Jan Nisbet; and members of the public, including Commissioner of Agriculture, Lorraine Merrill; State Senator Amanda Merrill; and Director of the New Hampshire Farm Bureau, Rob Johnson.

Ramaswamy spoke in detail about the current funding challenges he has inherited and discussed a variety of topics, including the importance of agricultural research and production, the consequences we face if there is no new farm bill by September 30, Congress’s general feeling about issues of climate change and new energy solutions as these apply to agriculture, the trials investigators face in searching for non-federal matching funds to grants, and the need to clear the pipeline so that American students can meet the demand for more plant breeders and other skilled workers in various phases of the agricultural industry.

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