Latest News

February 3, 2021

A previously unknown root trait allows some cereal plants to grow deeper roots capable of punching through dry, hard, compacted soils, according to Penn State researchers, who suggest that harnessing the inherited characteristic could lead to crops better able to deal with a changing climate.

January 19, 2021

The finding of relatively high levels of the antimicrobial compound clovamide in the leaves of a disease-resistant strain of cacao has significant implications for breeding trees that can tolerate black pod rot, according to Penn State researchers who conducted a novel study.

January 12, 2021

Providing the country’s apple farmers and cider producers with information on cider production technologies and marketing, global trends and developments, and consumer preferences was at the core of three yearly seminars in Kiev, Ukraine, led by Penn State Extension.

January 12, 2021

The Water-Energy-Food Nexus Colombia seed grant program has announced the selection of three research projects led by faculty from Penn State and Universidad Jorge Tadeo Lozano (UTADEO), in Bogotá, Colombia, to support research and development work with three departments in Colombia. This multi-institutional, collaborative program is aimed at building long‐term partnerships among Penn State and Colombian partners and is supported with funds from Penn State Global Programs and the Office of International Programs in the College of Agricultural Sciences, and by grants to UTADEO from the Public Affairs Office of the U.S. Embassy of Bogotá, Colombia, and the Colombian Institute of Educational Credit and Technical Studies Abroad.

January 12, 2021

A call to support research aided by Penn State on how COVID-19 has changed the lives of young people was answered by more than 6,000 youth in at least 50 countries. The global, interdisciplinary research initiative is designed to support youth and empower them to play an active role in addressing the challenges left in the pandemic’s wake

January 12, 2021

Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences announced recipients of its 2020 Staff Laureate Awards during a recent virtual collegewide staff meeting. The awards program, which recognizes and honors five staff members for their contributions to the college, is coordinated by the staff advisory committee to the dean and administered by the college’s human resources office.

November 17, 2020

Biochar — a charcoal-like substance made primarily from agricultural waste products — holds promise for removing emerging contaminants such as pharmaceuticals from treated wastewater. That’s the conclusion of a team of researchers that conducted a novel study that evaluated and compared the ability of biochar derived from two common leftover agricultural materials...

November 17, 2020

Dairy cows, exposed for a few years to drinking water contaminated with heavy metals, carry more pathogens loaded with antimicrobial-resistance genes able to tolerate and survive various antibiotics. That’s the finding of a team of researchers that conducted a study of two dairy herds in Brazil four years after a dam holding mining waste ruptured, and it spotlights a threat to human health, the researchers contend.

November 16, 2020

While women represent a significant portion of the global agricultural workforce, they face many roadblocks to success, including limited access to land, technological advancements, education and financing. They also often are excluded from household-level and policy decisions that determine their future. These barriers, and ways to overcome them, are explored in a new publication, “Routledge Handbook of Gender and Agriculture,” co-edited by faculty in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences.

October 16, 2020

Students in the international agriculture minor — commonly referred to as INTAG — in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences are learning more about global hunger by attending the 2020 World Food Prize Norman E. Borlaug International Symposium, which is taking place virtually this week.

August 25, 2020

The risk of transmitting the livestock virus PPRV, which threatens 80% of the world’s sheep and goats, increases with certain husbandry practices but not herd size. A new study, led by researchers at Penn State, investigated how transmission of PPRV might change at different scales and identified specific husbandry practices associated with increased odds of infection.

August 22, 2020

August 18, 2020

Global Programs has announced the 2020 recipients of annual awards that recognize the outstanding contributions of individuals and academic programs at Penn State who have helped to advance the University’s global engagement goals. Faculty and students from the College of Agricultural Sciences received six of the ten awards presented. Awards included the college's work in gender, youth development, innovation in international education, and the nexus of water, energy, and food.

August 17, 2020

Two students in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, Janelle Answer and Justin Kurtz, have received the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship.

August 3, 2020

As part of Penn State’s ongoing support of research in the water-energy-food (WEF) nexus, an online information session focused specifically on WEF nexus efforts in Colombia will be held from 9 to 11:45 a.m. on Aug. 6. Siela Maximova, a global faculty fellow for Latin America for the College of Agricultural Sciences; Rachel Brennan, director of the Penn State WEF Nexus Initiative; and Paige Castellanos, assistant research professor of international agriculture and rural sociology, along with Warner, are hosting the information session via Zoom.

July 29, 2020

Surinder Chopra, professor of maize genetics in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences, has been awarded funding from the U.S Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture to study the improvement of corn defenses against the fall armyworm.

July 22, 2020

Even under ideal conditions, rural farmers have their work cut out for them. This is particularly the case for women, who are responsible for a multitude of chores in the field and in the home. The coronavirus pandemic has made female farmers’ to-do lists more daunting as they manage added domestic responsibilities while ensuring a safe and ample food supply for their families and communities. Reflecting on the challenges, but more importantly, the triumphs of women in agriculture in the era of COVID-19 was the impetus for the blog, “Gender, Food, Agriculture, and the Coronavirus,” created by gender scholars in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences.

July 20, 2020

In their zeal to promote the importance of climate change as an ecological driver, climate scientists increasingly are ignoring the profound role that Indigenous peoples played in fire and vegetation dynamics, not only in the eastern United States but worldwide, according to a Penn State researcher.

July 10, 2020

Although the travel portion of their study abroad class was canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic, animal science students in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences still experienced a “virtual” Ireland while learning about the equine industry in Pennsylvania.

June 17, 2020

GEARE faculty launch a blog examining gendered impacts, specifically in the area of food and agriculture, due to the Corona virus pandemic.

June 15, 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic is negatively affecting all segments of society, and young people — whose educational, financial and social lives have been hindered — are no exception, leaving many of them anxious about the future. Supporting those youth — and empowering them to play an active role in addressing the challenges left in the pandemic’s wake — is the focus of a global research initiative supported by faculty and students in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences.

June 9, 2020

In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have all become aware of how a global crisis can affect our access to food. But imagine the food security impacts of an even worse scenario — an all-out nuclear war, a large asteroid strike or a supervolcano eruption. Such catastrophes could block out sunlight, alter rainfall patterns and contaminate water supplies, which could drastically affect our food systems. An interdisciplinary team of Penn State professors has received $3 million from Open Philanthropy to study food resilience in the face of such catastrophic global events.

May 19, 2020

May 13, 2020

Olivia Richart is the recipient of the Outstanding Senior Award for the 2019-20 academic year in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences. The Outstanding Senior Award, sponsored by the College of Agricultural Sciences Alumni Society and the Coaly Society, honors the senior who best balances outstanding academics, extracurricular activities, work experience and communication skills. Candidates are selected based on resumes, grades, interviews and a short essay.

May 4, 2020

A $450,000 grant from the U.S. Agency for International Development’s Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Peanut Research will aid researchers in Penn State’s College of Agricultural Sciences as they explore the potential to empower women farmers in northern Ghana through peanut production.

April 20, 2020

Deanna Behring, assistant dean and director of international programs in Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences is a recipient of the college's Distinguished Alumni Award, an honor that recognizes alumni who have demonstrated excellence in career achievements and contributions to community and humanity.

April 14, 2020

Penn State Extension is connecting with Latinx agriculturists in essential food businesses to provide timely outreach and science-based education on farm production, food safety and workplace risk management.

March 5, 2020

Started in 2018, Global Guides is a seven-month professional development program for teachers in any discipline. It is a partnership between the World Food Prize Foundation, an international organization that recognizes achievements in food security, and "Global Teach Ag!" at Penn State, an initiative that aims to develop capacity in teachers for global impact in food, fiber and natural resources through youth development and education programming.

March 2, 2020

Through a memorandum of understanding with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the U.N. (FAO), David Hughes, Penn State professor of entomology and biology and creator of PlantVillage, an initiative to empower farmers with agricultural knowledge and technologies, is answering a UN call for a rapid response to the growing locust threat to East African crops. With U.N. support, he and his colleagues are fast-tracking the creation of a mobile app that locates and tracks the insects in order to assist in early warning and targeted spraying efforts.