What agInnovation does

agInnovation is a non-profit collaborative platform that serves as the national voice and coordination body for State Agricultural Experiment Stations across the U.S. land-grant university system. Founded as a 2023 rebrand of the Experiment Station Section (ESS) — which itself traces back to the federal Hatch Act of 1887 — the organization unifies five regional associations (1890 ARD, NCRA, NERA, SAESSD, WAESSD) under a single platform representing all 50+ state experiment stations. Its core offerings include the 2025-2035 Research Roadmap (a national strategy document addressing water resilience, climate solutions, and sustainable food systems), a suite of branding tools and templates for member communications, and an email newsletter distribution service. The platform also aggregates and promotes member research outputs through peer-reviewed publications and the Multistate Research Fund Impacts and landgrantimpacts.org databases.

The organization operates with no commercial revenue model; it is funded indirectly through federal grants administered via USDA NIFA ($1.57 billion annually flows through the land-grant system, though not to agInnovation as direct revenue) and member institution allocations. Its customer base is structurally diverse, spanning land-grant universities, state and federal policymakers, farmers and agricultural producers, the agricultural workforce pipeline (36,000+ annual graduates), and the general public as ultimate beneficiaries of food security and agricultural innovation. Research outputs are distributed through the nationwide land-grant Extension service network, providing a pre-existing federal-state delivery infrastructure for translating findings to end users.

Strategically, agInnovation positions itself around a national imperative to reverse a 30%+ decline in public agricultural R&D investment since 2002. Its value proposition rests on coordination at scale — documenting that member scientists perform 70% of publicly funded U.S. agricultural research and that every $1 invested in agricultural research returns $20 to the U.S. economy. The organization does not develop commercial technology products; its primary outputs are policy advocacy, strategic roadmapping, knowledge coordination, and brand unification across the public agricultural research ecosystem.

Name

agInnovation

Legal name

agInnovation

Website

https://aginnovation.info

Company type

Private

Founded year

2023

Operating status

Operating

Short description

agInnovation is a non-profit collaborative platform coordinating U.S. State Agricultural Experiment Stations across all land-grant universities, unified under one brand with five regional associations. It drives the 2025-2035 Research Roadmap and advocates for increased public agricultural R&D funding.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Research Coordination

NAICS

Research and Development in Biotechnology (except Nanobiotechnology) (541714)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700), Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Land-Grant Public Research Universities (EDAHAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Sustainable/Regenerative Agriculture & Conservation Practices (EDAOAOAO), Farm Technology Enablement & Data Integration Advisory (FMIS/ERP, IoT, Decision Support) (AFACAJAG), Carbon, Sustainability & Farm Certification Support (Agro-Environmental Advisory) (AFACABAL), Data Integration, Interoperability & APIs (ETL, Data Standards, Connectivity Hubs) (AFABAMAL)

Keywords

• Agricultural research coordination
• Land-grant universities
• Agricultural experiment stations
• Multistate research programs
• Research roadmap development

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Operations, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

agInnovation is a collaborative platform that coordinates and elevates agricultural research across America's Land-grant University system, uniting the State Agricultural Experiment Stations of 1862 and 1890 universities under a single brand umbrella. It develops and advances the 10-year agInnovation Research Roadmap (2025-2035), documents multistate research impact, and advocates for increased federal funding for agricultural research and extension.

Product overview

agInnovation is a collaborative platform for America's Land-grant University system, formerly known as the Experiment Station Section (ESS). The organization operates as a unified brand encompassing five regional memberships (1890s Association ARD, North Central Region NCRA, Northeast Region NERA, Southern Region SAESSD, and Western Region WAESSD). The core offering consists of the agInnovation platform itself, the 2025-2035 Research Roadmap outlining national agricultural research strategy, a suite of branding tools and templates for member communications, and a newsletter subscription service. The platform aggregates research from State Agricultural Experiment Stations covering focus areas including food security, agricultural systems, environmental stewardship, youth/families/communities, health/nutrition, and energy/bioproducts.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• agInnovation Collaborative Platform A collaborative platform that elevates the impact of America's Land-grant University system and serves as the national voice of the State Agricultural Experiment Stations, coordinating research across the 1890s Association, North Central, Northeast, Southern, and Western regional associations.
• agInnovation Research Roadmap 2025-2035 A 10-year national strategy document developed by Land-grant University leaders outlining outcomes-driven goals and innovative strategies for strengthening water resilience, protecting working lands, and ensuring sustainable food systems.

Quantifiable outcome

• Every $1 invested in agricultural research returns $20 to the U.S. economy
• +3 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core, key and notable.

• Hatch Act State Agricultural Experiment StationscoreOthers · 1 January 1887The federal Hatch Act of 1887 established the State Agricultural Experiment Station System, providing funds for each state to develop research stations focused on soil minerals and plant growth. This partnership forms the foundational structure of agInnovation.
• NASAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNASA collaborates with land-grant universities through controlled environment research, including development of advanced plant growth chambers for space applications. Data from University of Delaware hydroponics studies informed spectral customization for space crop production.
• Controlled Environment Agriculture Industry PartnerskeyStrategic or Co-development PartnerIndustry members participate in the controlled environment committee, contributing expertise and resources. JR Peters works with university researchers on optimal phosphorus application rates for cannabis production. Industry partners include equipment manufacturers and agricultural technology companies.
• Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartneragInnovation collaborates with APLU's Board on Agriculture Assembly in developing national research agendas. APLU Vice President Doug Steele endorsed the 10-year Research Roadmap as critical for directing national research agenda.
• Ale-8-One (Kentucky Beverage Company)notableStrategic or Co-development PartnerKentucky State University partnered with Ale-8-One to commercialize pawpaw fruit in a limited-edition Pawpaw Ale-8 beverage. The launch generated $21.32 million in advertising value equivalency within six weeks.
• U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)keyStrategic or Co-development PartnerUSDA APHIS research indicates feral hogs cause $1.5 billion in annual economic damages. Collaborates with land-grant universities on feral hog management and damage assessment studies.

Scale indicators17 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• American Farm Bureau Federation: Largest U.S. agricultural advocacy organization representing farmer and rancher interests. Adjacent to agInnovation's policy-advocacy mission but focused on producer policy rather than research coordination.
• National Sustainable Agriculture Coalition (NSAC): U.S. policy advocacy coalition focused on federal sustainable agriculture research, extension, and farming programs. Adjacent peer that engages in agricultural research policy advocacy similar to agInnovation's funding-advocacy role.
• Crop Science Society of America (CSSA): Scientific society advancing crop science research and education; serves overlapping academic and research communities with land-grant universities. Acts as an adjacent enabling organization rather than a direct research coordinator.

Broad incumbents

• USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA): Federal agency that funds and oversees extramural agricultural research at land-grant universities, providing the $1.57B annual pipeline that agInnovation's member institutions depend on. Operates as a broader federal research administrator rather than a peer coordinator.
• USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS): USDA's in-house research agency operating 90+ research locations across the U.S. Performs federal agricultural R&D intramurally, complementing the extramural land-grant system that agInnovation coordinates. Larger and more directly funded by federal appropriations.
• Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR): Global partnership of international agricultural research centers addressing food security across developing countries. Comparable as a multi-institution agricultural R&D coordination platform, but operates globally rather than U.S.-only.

Direct peers

• Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR): Public-private partnership organization that co-funds agricultural research with USDA, leveraging matching dollars from industry. Comparable to agInnovation as a non-profit research-coordination and funding-catalyst entity serving U.S. agriculture.
• Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU): National higher-education association whose Board on Agriculture Assembly co-developed the agInnovation Research Roadmap and whose member institutions overlap extensively with agInnovation's land-grant constituents. Most direct peer in convening public university agricultural leadership.

Regional players

• AgResearch (New Zealand): Crown research institute delivering pastoral, food, and agri-technology research across New Zealand. Comparable in mission as a government-backed agricultural research body, but operates in a different geography.
• National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO), Uganda: Ugandan government agency coordinating national agricultural research across commodity institutes. Functions as a national research coordinator analogous to agInnovation but for a different country.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about agInnovation