Private Research Investment Replacing Declining Role by Universities

(WASHINGTON, DC) Historically, public institutions played a direct role in developing new agricultural technologies, encouraging commercialization and adoption by farmers. Levels of public investment in research and development (R&D) increased through the early 1980s, according to the Economic Research Service (ERS) at USDA. However, since then, growth rates in public-sector R&D have been generally low. Between 2003 and 2014, total private R&D doubled while public R&D fell. By 2010, private R&D for agricultural inputs alone surpassed the public level for all agricultural research, which also includes research in areas not directly related to crop and livestock production. Public and private agricultural research efforts are often complementary, rather than competitive. The private sector focuses mainly on R&D related to marketable goods and technologies, with a large share of investments going to the food manufacturing industry. The private sector also dominates farm machinery research. On the other hand, public-sector research efforts are more likely to be applied to areas with large social benefits, such as environmental protection, nutrition, and food safety.