NIFA Invests $8M to Spur Small Business-Led Innovation (SBIR/STTR Phase I, Round 2)

NIFA’s Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs provide competitively awarded grants to qualified small businesses to support high quality research related to important scientific problems and opportunities in agriculture that could lead to significant public benefits.

The program is designed to fund early or "seed" stage research and development that has a commercial potential, providing equity-free funding and entrepreneurial support at the earliest stages of company and technology development.

The aim of projects funded in Phase I of NIFA’s SBIR/STTR programs is to demonstrate technical feasibility of the proposed innovation and thereby bring the innovation closer to commercialization.

Awardees by Topic Area

Animal Production and Protection

• Carolina Seed Systems
• Hoofprint Biome Inc.
• Kainomyx Inc.
• Membrane Protective Technologies Inc.
• ReproHealth Technologies Inc.
• Seia Bio Inc.
• Spectral Energies LLC/University of Tennessee

Conservation of Natural Resources

• Aerodyne Research Inc.
• Eastern Scientific LLC/Eastern Kentucky University
• GreenTechnologies LLC
• Latitude-Ag LLC
• Nikira Labs Inc.
• Softworthy LLC
• Stratio Inc.
• Syntro Tek Corporation
• TDA Research Inc.
• Water Illumination Inc.

Food Science and Nutrition

• Advanced Cooling Technologies Inc.
• Atlantic Fish Co.
• GradEd Gaming LLC
• Heliponix
• Oceanit Laboratories Inc./Washington State University
• PumpKin Baby Inc./Princeton University
• Reel Seafood Inc.
• Universal Schedule and Booking LLC
• vivoVerse Inc.
• ZDC Tech Ltd. Co./Washington State University

Biofuels and Biobased Products

• Advanced Energy Materials LLC
• Catapower Inc.
• Cellacure LLC
• ChemFinity Technologies Inc.
• Cold Current Kelp LLC
• EcoaTEX
• ORB Technologies LLC
• Soylei Innovations LLC/Iowa State University
• Sustainable Chemicals LLC

Plant Production and Protection (Engineering)

• Acreage Farms
• EZ Ag Innovations/University of Florida
• Giner Inc.
• Interdisciplinary Consulting Corporation/USDA ARS South Atlantic Area Center for Medical, Agricultural & Veterinary Entomology
• L5 Automation Inc.
• Madain Corporation
• Plains Technologies/University of Nebraska–Lincoln
• Rowbot Systems LLC
• UbiQD Inc.
• Vectech Inc.