Location: Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory
Project Number: 3064-21600-001-084-A
Project Type: Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Jul 20, 2026
End Date: Jul 15, 2027
Objective:
Determine how agricultural practices influence the ecometabolomic profile of crops, the nutritional and metabolomic profile of grains, and the minerals, vitamins, fatty acids and various metabolites associated with milk nutritional value when ruminant livestock graze low versus high plant diversity cover crop fields.
Approach:
ARS role: ARS scientists will obtain plant tissue samples from differently managed agricultural fields, milk samples from livestock fed different diets, and agricultural field amendments from regenerative farming practices.
Cooperator role: Cooperator will extract, analyze, and summarize data reports from sample analyses. Analyses will include phytochemicals, fatty acids, minerals and heavy metals, and vitamins.
ARS scientists and cooperator will share data and write results for deliverables to help guide farmers and producers in best management practices to increase profitability, expand their markets, promote soil health, and ultimately improve human health through enhanced food quality.