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Menu Agricultural Research Service
						
                    U.S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
 National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research: Peoria, IL
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The National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research (NCAUR) is among the largest agricultural research centers in the United States. NCAUR employs nearly 200 scientists and support staff in research to improve agricultural production, food safety and public health, economic development, and environmental quality. Join Our Team
 Scientists at NCAUR have developed an inexpensive, environmentally friendly alternative to synthetic insecticides. They discovered that thebyproducts of processing mustard seeds into spices and oil can be exploited for controlling mosquitoes in their habitat. This technology demonstrates how plant-based biocontrol agents can be used as practical and ecofriendly bioinsecticides.
 Pennycress as cash cover crop to “fuel the bioeconomy” was selected as a top USDA-ARS innovation at the 100th USDA Ag Outlook Forum. Pennycress was initially discovered as a potential new oil seed crop by scientists at NCAUR. Oils from genetically modified pennycress are playing a role in the project as new and non-edible oil feedstocks for conversion to biofuels and bioproducts.
 Identifying the influence of crop species, varieties, and seasonal dynamics on microbial colonization provides valuable insights for developing effective microbial biocontrol. NCAUR scientists are using an interdisciplinary approach, combining field observations and controlled lab experiments, to advance sustainable agriculture practices.
 NCAUR scientists isolated fungi and bacteria from corn leaves that may one day be able to control outbreaks of the corn tar spot pathogen. Some of these fungi and bacteria have been able to reduce the releasing of reproductive structures of the tar spot pathogen. Tar spot is a problem in Florida and Midwestern United States.
 NCAUR has an ongoing effort to convert agricultural waste to wealth. Scientists at NCAUR have been able to transform lactose, a dairy industry waste, into environmentally friendlier plastics with applications in industry and consumer products. These novel plastics represent a “win-win-win situation” for industry, farmers, and consumers.


**What We Do** Improve agricultural production and the economic security of rural communities
Ensure the American food supply is safe and nutritious
Advance economic development and job creation
Protect the environment by reducing agricultural inputs and wastes
Promote interest in STEM in Central Illinois and beyond


**NCAUR News** No More Crying over Spilled Milk
From Toxin to Tonic
Growing Together
Microbial Allies May Help Turn Tables on Tar Spot Fungus in Corn
Turning Discards into a Winning Hand
Scientists Spice up Their Mosquito Weaponry with Mustard
ARS Looks to Find New Routes for Green Fuels and Chemicals
Green Jet Fuel Takes Off
A Purrr-fect Use for Soy Waste?
Corn: Food, Fuel, and Now... Fiber Too?
Dr. George Fanta is inducted into the ARS Science Hall of Fame
Dr. Badal Saha received the Charles D. Scott Award at the 45th Symposium on Biomaterials, Fuels, and Chemicals
ARS scientists working to make wheat climate resilient
Farmers wanted to help stop mycotoxin outbreaks
Making Butter-like Spreads Healthier
Researchers Uncover 33 New Species of Toxic Fungi
Hidden in Plain Sight
ARS Scientists Team Up to Fight Flies
Researchers Enlist Sturdy Yeast to Help Make Cost-Effective Ethanol
Dr. Mark Berhow received the Lifetime Achievement Award from Phytochemical Society of North America
Dr. Jill Moser is a 2022 AOCS Award Winner
New School, Meet Old School
Dr. Terry Isbell is inducted into the ARS Science Hall of Fame
NCAUR Pennycress Researchers win the  2022 ARS Technology Transfer Award
Ag Lab providing tons of fresh produce for local food pantries since 2010
Scientists are creating homegrown biofuels in the Peoria Ag Lab
How do You Make Yogurt Even Healthier? Add Chickpea Flour
Pleasant-Smelling Wood Oil Not So Pleasant for Biting Ticks
Sorghum: A Sweet Proposition for Sustainable Biofuel
Peoria "Ag-Lab": Where Innovation and Outreach go Hand-in-Hand
Readying Wheat with Climate Resiliency
The Enduring Mystery of Moldy Mary
Making Air Travel More Sustainable with Soy-Fuel Innovations
Scientist of Many Talents Champions Planet Friendly Products
Penicillium Strain Named State Microbe of Illinois
Repurposing Ag-Waste to Create Bioplastics
Microbe Turns Bread Waste Into Useful Compound
Dr. Atanu Biswas is a recipient of the 2020-2022 Fulbright US Scholar Fellowship Award
Diesel Fuel Gets a Boost from Tung Oil
Illinois Women in Science
USDA Agency and Company Partner to Explore Personal Care Products from Hemp
Guardians of the Microbial Galaxy
Science in Your Shopping Cart, Episode 3: Biomass
Biobased Kitty Litter is the Cat's Meow
With Alternative Grains, Customers Can Have Their Cake and Eat It Too
Fungus Commits Floral Fraud to Fool Insects into Spreading It
Compound from Soil Bacterium Gets a Reboot as Antibiotics Super Booster
Plants Give Rise to Biodegradable Base Oils-With Helping Hand from Science
Friendly Fungus Protects Against Wheat Scab
Mustard Family Member Seen as Biofuel Source
Peoria Ag Lab Scientists Cooking up Biodegradable Plastic
Turning Plant Resources into Plastics Makes Peoria Researcher a Fullbright Scholar
Microbe With Taste for Stale Bread Finds It's Calling
Building A Better, Biobased Cat Litter
Researchers Put Cornstarch to Use Fighting Pests
Dr. Fred Eller is named AOCS (American Oil Chemists' Society) Fellow for 2020
Biological "Green" Alternatives to Chemical Pesticides
Cedar's Hidden Potential
NCAUR Scientists will participate in the 2019 Career Spark
NCAUR Scientists participate in 2019 Science Rocks
NCAUR Scientists Cook Up New Uses for Ancient Grains
Innovative Cornstarch Makes Products Sustainable and 'Green'
Giving Tortilla Chips a Vitamin E Boost
Bacteria Turn Table Sugar into More
How Research at the Peoria Ag Lab has Impacted Decades of Innovations
6 Common Products Developed at the Peoria Ag Lab
Cuphea Oil Chemical Repels Pests
NCAUR hosts the 60th Annual Corn Dry Milling Conference
Dr. Atanu Biswasreceived the Chemist of the Year award for the Heartland chapter of the American Chemical Society
Dr. Mila Hojilla-Envangelista is named AOCS (American Oil Chemists' Society) Fellow for 2019
Dr. Kerry O'Donnell is inducted into the ARS Science Hall of Fame
USDA-ARS Partners to Produce Low Glycemic Sweetner
ARS Culture Collection, A Valuable Resource
Coconut Oil Compounds Repel Insects Better than DEET
Dr. Steven Vaughn participated in the Solutions for Sediment episode of the Illinois River Documentary on WTVP
Dr. Mila Hojilla-Evangelista received the 2018 Distinguished Alumna Award for Research and Development (Food Technology) from the University of the Philippines at Los Baños- College of Agriculture and Food Science, College, Laguna, Philippines
A Bacterial Reboot for Penicillin
NCAUR Scientists participate in Career Spark
4 NCAUR Scientists are interviewed on WTVP
Employing Wheat's Bacterial Partners to Fight a Pathogen
Public-Private Partnership is a Win-Win
Alternative Tools for Mosquito Control
Outreach to Future Scientists and Engineers
NCAUR hosts the 2018 Corn Dry Milling Conference
Earth Day 2018 "End Plastic Pollution"
Dr. Michael Appell received the Chemist of the Year award for the Heartland chapter of the American Chemical Society
Revitalizing Rural America Through Transformative Agricultural Reserach
Soil Bacterium Tapped for Penicillin Guard Duty
Dr. Martha Vaughan speaks about Women in Science
Leaving on a BioJet Plane
USDA_ARS Safeguards Valuable Scientific Resources
USDA-ARS Breakthrough “Super Slurper” Launched Absorbents Industry
USDA_ARS Researchers are Controlling Mosquitoes Naturally
NCAUR a History of Innovation
Penicillin was Pioneered in Peoria at USDA-ARS Research Lab
Work Of USDA Food Research Pioneer Continues in Peoria
Better Paper, Plastics with Starch
Vegetable Oils Remove Heavy Metals from Water
Making Cookies with Ancient Grains and Seeds
Dr. Cletus Kurtzman is inducted into the ARS Science Hall of Fame
Wild Grape: A Domestic Source of Gum Arabic
Ag Utilization Centers Celebrate 75 Years of Innovation
Formulating Fungal Biopesticides
Closing in on Butanol for Biofuel
Transparent Coating for Glass and Plastics, May Have a Bright Future


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