UNH Today

More than 130 years ago, Congress established the nation’s state agricultural experiment station system. Throughout history, these public research organizations, most at land-grant state universities such as the University of New Hampshire, have addressed the most pressing agricultural and natural resources problems of the day.

When the frontier opened, experiment stations tackled critical agricultural and farming challenges. They helped lift the nation out of the Great Depression. National emergencies such as World War II resulted in public scientists addressing urgent matters of national and global security. In the 1960s and 1970s, researchers focused on improving water, air, and land. Today, the crises of climate change, disease, and food insecurity help guide experiment station research to support a cleaner, healthier, safer world. Every day, public scientists everywhere focus on addressing pressing issues affecting their states and communities.

We are proud to be part of a committed community of state agricultural experiment stations that serve their state’s agricultural and natural resources communities with evidenced-based research that directly improves the lives of their citizens. In this time of crisis, know that we are among the thousands of public scientists at land-grant universities dedicated to keeping our food supply and our environment safe and secure.

We will get through this.

Founded in 1887, the NH Agricultural Experiment Station at the UNH College of Life Sciences and Agriculture is UNH’s original research center and an elemental component of New Hampshire's land-grant university heritage and mission. We steward federal and state funding, including support from the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, to provide unbiased and objective research concerning diverse aspects of sustainable agriculture and foods, aquaculture, forest management, and related wildlife, natural resources and rural community topics. We maintain the Woodman and Kingman agronomy and horticultural research farms, the Macfarlane Research Greenhouses, the Fairchild Dairy Teaching and Research Center, and the Organic Dairy Research Farm. Additional properties also provide forage, forests and woodlands in direct support to research, teaching, and outreach.

The University of New Hampshire is a flagship research university that inspires innovation and transforms lives in our state, nation and world. More than 16,000 students from all 50 states and 71 countries engage with an award-winning faculty in top ranked programs in business, engineering, law, liberal arts and the sciences across more than 200 programs of study. UNH’s research portfolio includes partnerships with NASA, NOAA, NSF and NIH, receiving more than $100 million in competitive external funding every year to further explore and define the frontiers of land, sea and space.