Future Focused

Man holds out cut orange sweetpotato in front of crowd

Nov 12, 2025

20 Years to Grow on: Future-proofing NC State’s Covington Sweetpotato

As NC State University's renowned Covington sweetpotato turns 20, plant breeders are working tirelessly to add resistance to a new pest, using the latest tools.

two men inside a building look at a computer screen with a map and live images from a drone

Nov 6, 2025

Precision on Autopilot: Autonomous Drone Accelerates Research for Drought-Tolerant Soybeans

New drone technology being tested in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering is poised to usher crop production into the future.

a man in a field of row crops examines leaves from a stalk he pulled

Nov 4, 2025

FFAR Fellows Grow As Leaders in Agriculture and Beyond

With a focus on interdisciplinary communication, leadership and career-readiness skills, NC State's Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research Fellows gain experience beyond their fields of study to better lead the future of food and agriculture.

Student in a corn field holding two corn cobs.

Oct 10, 2025

Unlocking Heirloom Corn’s Untapped Potential

To protect the future of America’s biggest crop, NC State researchers are cataloging traits in almost a thousand types of corn that were nearly lost to history.

peanut seedling against a white background

Oct 9, 2025

Researchers Share Images to Accelerate AI Use in Agriculture

An open-source plant image repository developed at NC State University could help close a gap in artificial intelligence for agriculture.

two people work on a marshy coastal shoreline with equipment

Oct 8, 2025

Protecting North Carolina Coastlines with Natural Solutions

Sam Holberg, a doctoral student in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, hopes to find a way to leverage oyster farms as a nature-based solution to halt erosion along the coast.

Young woman standing in front of a science poster

Oct 7, 2025

Summer Internship in Japan Advances Reproductive Science

Through a summer internship at Nagoya University in Japan, animal science major Jasmine Alston gained hands-on experience studying the effects of low estrogen levels on kisspeptin, a hormone that regulates reproductive function in mammals.

a pile of red, green and yellow tomatoes

Sep 24, 2025

New Biosensor Could be Key to Timing Fruit Ripening

A new biosensor developed by researchers in the Department of Plant and Microbial Biology is shedding light on how the hormone ethylene impacts plants during ripening as well as processes such as seed germination and pathogen defense.

a man sits at a desk looking at a computer screen

Sep 12, 2025

From Computer Science to Crop Science

At 70 years old, Steve Amerige is working toward a doctoral degree in crop science using skills from his long career in software programming to develop new tools for precision agriculture.

Prairie strip growing in wheat at the LTER Main Cropping Systems Experiment.

Sep 8, 2025

Suite of Models Shows Some Positive Effects of Climate-Smart Ag Practices

No-till farming, cover-crop utilization and residue retention can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, according to a study using a suite of models.