Funded Research Projects

M-AAA Funded Projects

Rackham Research Endowment Grant Program Funded Projects — 2025

  • Ji Yoon Yi, Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering (PI); Teresa Bergholz, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition (Collaborator): Integrated Hyperspectral Microscope Imaging and AI Platform for Simultaneous Detection and Identification of Salmonella Serovars in Food Systems

  • Jamie Willbur, Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences (PI); Rachel Naegele, USDA ARS and Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences (Collaborator): Molecular analysis of the transcriptomic and epigenomic changes during cold storage associated with the induction of bolting in sugar beet roots

  • Mywish Maredia, Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics (PI); David Tschirley, Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics (Collaborator); David Nyange, Department of Agricultural, Food and Resource Economics (Collaborator): Trust the Messenger: Improving Legitimacy of Irrigation Pricing Reforms in Tanzania

  • Yoorae Noh, School of Packaging (PI): Enhancing Specialty Crop Value through Recyclable Packaging: A Case for Organic Dry Beans

Douglas and Maria Bayer New Initiatives Fund for Sustainable Agriculture Funded Projects — 2025

  • Olivia Smith, Department of Horticulture (PI); Lauren Sullivan, Department of Plant Biology (co-PI); Elizabeth Schultheis (co-PI): Weed SEEDS: Weed Seed Entry and Establishment Dynamics Study

  • Andrea Glassmire, Department of Entomology (PI); David Douches, Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences (co-PI); Zsofia Szendrei, Department of Entomology (co-PI); Tony Schilimiller (co-PI): Harnessing Odor Diversity for Sustainable Pest Control and Food Resilience

McIntire-Stennis Funded Projects — 2025

  • Akihiro Koyama, Department of Forestry (PI); Lars Brudvig, Department of Plant Biology (co-PI);  Christopher Blackwood, Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences (co-PI): Using fire-mediated plant-soil feedbacks to overcome tree recruitment bottlenecks in eastern forests

  • Mojgan Nejad, Department of Forestry (PI); Laurent Matuana, School of Packaging (co-PI): Lignin-Based Polyurethane Foams for Sustainable Packaging

  • Jeremy Johnson, Department of Forestry (PI): Dendrogenomics: An approach to untangle patterns of forest health and adaptation in forest trees at their range limits

Multistate Program Funded Projects — 2025

  • Valerio Hoyos Villegas, Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences (PI); Miranda Haus, Department of Horticulture (co-PI): Enhancing resistance to root rots in the MSU dry bean breeding program

  • Roberto G. Lopez, Department of Horticulture (PI); Joshua Vander Weide, Department of Horticulture (co-PI): Co-optimization of Greenhouse Temperature and Vapor Pressure Deficit to Enhance the Growth, Development, and Yield of Strawberry

  • Teresa Bergholz, Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition (PI); Jiyoon Yi, Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering (co-PI); Kirk Dolan, Department of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering (co-PI): Incorporating AI to improve predictive models for Listeria monocytogenes growth on foods