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UF/IFAS Office of the Dean for Research

UF/IFAS Office of the Dean for Research

The 1st Emerging Agricultural Enterprises Summit was held on December 9-10, 2019 at the UF/IFAS Straughn Center on UF's main campus. Following that event, the UF/IFAS Dean for Research Office and the UF/IFAS Dean for Extension Office, in partnership with the Vice President for Agriculture and Natural Resources, created a program called "Support for Emerging Enterprise Development Integration Teams (SEEDIT)."

The 2nd Emerging Agricultural Enterprises Summit was held on August 11-12, 2022 at the UF/IFAS Gulf Coast Research and Education Center in Wimauma, FL. New collaborative teams were formed at the event, and current teams were strengthened. Additional funding opportunities will be posted soon.

Materials from the 1st Summit in 2019:Materials from 2nd Summit in 2022:

Click here to view the full agenda.

Indoor propagation of transplants handout

Medical and Beverage Crops handout

Urban Agriculture handout

High tunnel vegetable production handout

Click here to view the full agenda.

Click here for photos of the event.

Click here for Southeast AgNet article.

The objectives of the SEEDIT program are to: (1) create novel markets for agricultural products and services by identifying choke points and alleviating economic barriers to growth, (2) create significant public-private partnerships involving UF/IFAS faculty, and (3) support Florida's agricultural versatility.

$1.24 Million

was provided in by the UF/IFAS Research Dean, the UF/IFAS Extension Dean, and the UF/IFAS VP

19 Projects

were funded in plant-based agriculture, aquaculture, animal agriculture, and agricultural systems

175 Investigators

were involved including 98 academic faculty (47 assistant professors), 67 county or regional Extension agents, and 10 others (e.g. assistant scientist); 171 are UF/IFAS

22 Units

were involved including 14 academic units, eight RECs/off-campus units; also five major centers/programs, and three other UF colleges

This is a graphical representation of the information found in the table below.

Enterprise

PI Name, PI Unit(s) | Other Involved Units

Barley

Zotarelli, Lincoln, Horticultural Sciences | AGR, FSHN, NFREC

Blackberries

Deng, Zhanao, Gulf Coast REC & Environmental Horticulture | HOS, ENY, PLP

Craft beer and spirits

Lai, John, Food and Resource Economics | FRE, GCREC, NFREC

Fresh carrots

Treadwell, Danielle, Horticultural Sciences | MREC, FYCS, ENY, SWS, NFREC, PLP

Finger limes

Dutt, Manjul, Citrus REC & Horticultural Sciences | TREC, FRE

Ginger, tumeric, camellia tea

Fisher, Paul, Environmental Horticulture | NFREC, MFREC, PLP, HOS, ENY, FYCS, ABE, Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants

Hemp

Brym, Zachary, Tropical REC, Agronomy | AEC

High-tunnel vegetables

Zhao, Xin, Horticultural Sciences | EREC, ENY, PLP, EREC, FRE

Sustainable landscaping

Iannone, Basil, School of Forest Resources and Conservation | Program for Resource Efficient Communities, ENY, Center for Public Issues Education, FLREC

Lettuce

Sandoya Miranda, German, Everglades REC & Horticultural Sciences | NFREC, FYCS, GCREC

Marine baitfish

Ropicki, Andrew, Food and Resource Economics | SFRC, IRREC, TAL

Oysters

Asche, Frank, SFRC - Fisheries & Aquatic Sciences Program | FRE, Sea Grant, Institute for Sustainable Food Systems, UF College of Public Health and Health Professions, UF College of Veterinary Medicine

Pongamia

Guzman, Sandra, Indian River REC & Agricultural and Biological Engineering | HOS, PLP, SWS

Scutellaria (anti-cancer)

Nadakuduti, Satya, Environmental Horticulture | MREC, HOS, ABE, NFREC, Center for Aquatic and Invasive Plants, ENY, FYCS, UF College of Pharmacy

Sheep and goats

Wallau, Marcelo, Agronomy | WEC, FRE, ANS, UF College of Veterinary Medicine

Specialty pumpkins

Meru, Geoffrey, Tropical REC & Horticultural Sciences | AGR, SWS, FSHN, FYCS

Sweet potato

Grabau, Zane, Entomology and Nematology | IRREC, NFREC, HOS, PLP, ABE, Program for Resource Efficient Communities

Urban agriculture

Campbell, Catherine, Family Youth and Community Sciences | MFREC

Vanilla

Chambers, Alan, Tropical REC & Horticultural Sciences | FRED