USDA grant funds $5 million greenhouse modernization at University of Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture will replace research greenhouses that date back to the 1960s with a new climate-controlled complex, thanks to a $2.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Combined with a matching contribution from the Division of Agriculture, the award creates a $5 million investment in agricultural research and extension infrastructure.

The USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture awarded the grant through the Research Facilities Act Program as part of a $121 million nationwide investment spanning more than 30 universities. The funding is designated for the Milo J. Shult Agricultural Research and Extension Center in Fayetteville, where seven aging greenhouses no longer provide the level of environmental control needed for year-round agricultural research, according to Mary Savin, head of the department of horticulture for the Division of Agriculture and the project leader.

The planned complex will consist of nine greenhouses incorporating advanced environmental control technologies, including modern heating and cooling systems, ventilation, irrigation, lighting, humidity controls and automated monitoring systems. The designs also include a classroom and additional preparation space for greenhouse research. Modernizations include updated structural design, climate control and automated systems throughout the facility.

One notable change involves the building envelope itself: the new greenhouses will replace glass with polycarbonate panels. Polycarbonate is expected to be more durable during severe weather common in the Southeast and more energy efficient, supporting greater year-round use of the facilities. Programmable control systems will allow different greenhouses to maintain distinct temperature, light and other environmental conditions tailored to specific experiments, giving researchers the ability to customize growing environments in ways the current facilities cannot.

The limitations of the existing greenhouses are concrete. Most of the current facilities lack the equipment, utility infrastructure and capability needed for precise climate management, and researchers cannot consistently control temperature, light or other growing conditions. Some research projects can currently run only two to three weeks before greenhouse conditions become problematic. The upgraded facilities are intended to support longer-term studies, and Savin said researchers will be able to conduct longer and more reliable studies, complete multiple breeding and growing cycles, and evaluate new crops, production practices and agricultural technologies under precisely controlled conditions.

Plant breeding programs are expected to gain new capabilities as well. Automated controls and phenotyping tools will support high-throughput, precision breeding research and allow multiple breeding cycles per year without seasonal interruptions. The Division of Agriculture’s greenhouse facilities are used to develop new crop varieties, improve production practices and address emerging challenges facing agriculture. Fruit and vegetable breeders and researchers in plant disease management, hydroponics, ornamental plants, turfgrass science and food science also use the greenhouses.

Education and workforce development are part of the plan. Students and stakeholders will gain hands-on experience with modern greenhouse technologies and develop industry-relevant skills, and the complex is designed to support experiential learning for the next generation of workforce leaders. Savin said the new facility will provide infrastructure to support multidisciplinary research and partnerships with stakeholders.

“The greenhouse complex will position Arkansas researchers to better serve producers and communities for decades to come,” said Jean-François Meullenet, senior associate vice president for agriculture-research and director of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, the Division of Agriculture’s research arm. “It will modernize critical infrastructure and expand opportunities for innovation, teaching and outreach.”

Planning is underway, with construction expected to be completed in late 2028. The Division of Agriculture will sustain the complex through continued institutional support, greenhouse-use fees and revenue from research and industry partnerships. The work is supported by the Research Facilities Act Program through USDA-NIFA project award no. 2026-77047-47240.

Arkansas’s congressional delegation highlighted the award. U.S. Sen. John Boozman said he was proud to champion funding for the Research Facilities Act Program through the Working Families Tax Cuts and that it was great to see Arkansas benefiting from these increased investments and updating research facilities so it can continue to be a leader in food innovation. U.S. Rep. Steve Womack, who represents the state’s 3rd Congressional District, said the $2.5 million investment will give students and researchers the updated equipment and facilities needed to better study the crops that feed and clothe America, adding that having new greenhouses on campus is long overdue.

The announcement was issued on Oct. 27, 2026, as a grant and award announcement from the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture, written by John Lovett. Alongside the news, the Division released architectural renderings of the planned complex at the Milo J. Shult Agricultural Research and Extension Center, credited to MIT Greenhouse Solutions, and made downloadable renderings available so that stakeholders and the public could see the planned appearance of the facility before construction begins.

The project sits within a long-standing institutional framework. The Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system, a structure that ties federally supported research directly to outreach for farmers, communities and families across the state.

Organizationally, the Division of Agriculture is one of 22 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It maintains offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and has faculty on three system campuses, a footprint that links the Fayetteville research infrastructure to extension programming statewide. The greenhouse complex planned for the Milo J. Shult center will therefore serve not only campus-based scientists but also the broader extension network that carries research findings to producers and communities.

Readers seeking more information about the work supported by these facilities have several avenues described in the announcement. The Division directs those interested in agricultural and food research in Arkansas to aaes.uada.edu, the website of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, and invites followers to connect with the experiment station on LinkedIn and to sign up for its monthly newsletter, the Arkansas Agricultural Research Report. Information about the Division as a whole is available at uada.edu, and questions about extension programs can be directed to a local Cooperative Extension Service agent or addressed through uaex.uada.edu.

The Division’s own framing of the award emphasizes both research and outreach. Its fast-facts summary describes the grant as creating a $5 million investment in agricultural research and outreach infrastructure, and highlights that the greenhouses are used to develop new crop varieties and improve production practices. The modernization summary points to updated structural design, climate control and automated systems as the core elements of the upgrade, with the nine-greenhouse complex adding a classroom and more preparation space for greenhouse research to the site.

The emphasis on outreach reflects how the Division describes the facility’s purpose. Savin’s statement about the project notes that the new greenhouse facility will provide infrastructure to support multidisciplinary research, partnerships with stakeholders, and experiential learning to educate the next generation of workforce leaders. In that framing, the buildings are presented not simply as laboratory space but as a venue where university researchers, industry partners and students intersect, and where hands-on experience with modern greenhouse technologies can translate into industry-relevant skills for those who will work in agriculture after graduation.

The congressional comments attached to the announcement underscore the federal legislative pathway behind the funding. Sen. Boozman said he was proud to champion funding for the Research Facilities Act Program through the Working Families Tax Cuts, describing it as great to see Arkansas benefiting from these increased investments and updating research facilities so it can continue to be a leader in food innovation. Rep. Womack, whose district includes the Fayetteville area, said he was proud to have voted to fund the Research Facilities Act Program in the Working Families Tax Cuts law that made the grant possible, and characterized new greenhouses on campus as long overdue.

The award is formally recorded as USDA-NIFA project award no. 2026-77047-47240 under the Research Facilities Act Program. The announcement places the Arkansas grant within a $121 million nationwide NIFA investment at more than 30 universities, positioning the Fayetteville project as one component of a broader federal effort to modernize agricultural research facilities at institutions across the country.

With planning underway and construction expected to be completed in late 2028, the Division has also outlined how the complex will be maintained after it opens. The announcement states that UADA will sustain the facility through continued institutional support, greenhouse-use fees and revenue from research and industry partnerships, an operating model intended to keep the new greenhouses functioning for research, teaching and outreach over the long term.

The announcement also includes standard administrative notes. It states that, pursuant to 7 CFR § 15.3, the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services, including employment, without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual preference, pregnancy or any other legally protected status, and is an equal opportunity institution. Media inquiries about the project are directed to John Lovett of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station.

Subject of Research: A USDA-NIFA Research Facilities Act grant funding modernized climate-controlled research greenhouses at the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture.

Article Title: NIFA awards $2.5 million Research Facilities Act grant to UADA for greenhouse modernization

Article References: NIFA awards $2.5 million Research Facilities Act grant to UADA for greenhouse modernization. Original publication (Bibliographic details unavailable.)

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Keywords: USDA-NIFA, Research Facilities Act Program, University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture, greenhouse modernization, agricultural research, plant breeding, controlled environment agriculture, Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, research infrastructure, extension, Fayetteville, crop varieties