On Sept. 6, 2023, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Research Service and NC State University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences celebrated the groundbreaking for construction of a new plant research facility.

This state-of-the-art facility will house approximately 30-40 experts from ARS and NC State University who will conduct research on maize, soybean, wheat, cotton and peanuts. When completed, the 51,296 square-foot, single-story building will feature processing areas, office and research spaces organized in wings corresponding to their respective crop.

“The impact of agriculture and agribusiness in North Carolina exceeds $100 billion,” said NC State University Chancellor Randy Woodson. “We’re excited to partner with the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service on this facility and its solutions-driven approach for crops that are important economic drivers of the state’s economy.”