WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has launched an agricultural research program aimed at lowering farmers’ weed-control costs, reducing chemical exposure and protecting crop yields through new herbicides, autonomous equipment and environmental monitoring technologies.
The Systems for Tracking and Resilience in Efficient Agricultural-input Management program, known as STREAM, will be administered by the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health.
The initiative supports a broader commitment by HHS, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency to invest more than $1 billion in farm modernization and long-term food security.
STREAM will pursue four research priorities focused on new weed-control products, precision agricultural equipment, chemical monitoring and the removal of herbicide residues from soil and water.
Researchers will use artificial intelligence and machine learning to identify new chemical compounds, biologically derived herbicides and biological treatments designed to target weeds, including species resistant to existing products.
A separate research track will examine nonchemical and precision weed-control systems, including laser-based removal, miniature autonomous weeders and equipment that uses machine vision to apply herbicides only where needed.
The program will also support real-time modeling of chemical drift and U.S.-manufactured drones capable of targeted application, with the goal of reducing herbicide use while preserving agricultural productivity.
Additional research will focus on developing low-cost sensors capable of continuously detecting herbicides and related compounds that are currently difficult or expensive to monitor.
Those systems could allow communities to track potential contamination and respond more quickly when agricultural chemicals enter surrounding environments.
The fourth research area will examine methods for breaking down herbicides in soil and water, intercepting runoff before it reaches waterways and limiting chemical residues absorbed by crops.
“American farmers are locked in an arms race against weeds, which evolve faster than the tools we have to fight them,” ARPA-H Chief Medical Officer Rafid Fadul stated.
STREAM Program Manager James Coburn identified drinking-water protection as another priority, noting that communities need “better ways to monitor and protect drinking water from unintended agricultural chemical exposure.”
ARPA-H expects to make research awards through Other Transactions Agreements, with final funding decisions based on the quality of submitted proposals.
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