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Research

Our research addresses and overcomes grand challenges.

Our Path to Discovery

At the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, we ask a lot of questions. But we don’t stop there: Our search for answers is relentless. We interrogate the basics of the life sciences. Our research casts a wide net: $130 million in annual expenditures, supporting 600 active projects that explore more than 70 different commodities.

We’re present across the state, with NC State Extension units in every county and 18 agricultural research stations covering more than 19,000 acres. In labs on campus and across North Carolina, our faculty and students take on big questions and develop meaningful solutions. Our Extension agents take those answers into the field and test them, giving our researchers essential insights into refining their discoveries.

An Innovation Infrastructure

For nearly 130 years, NC State has been a friend to North Carolina farmers. N.C. Agricultural Research Service (NCARS) conducts research, and NC State Extension – with centers serving all 100 counties and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians – brings that research to the community and beyond.

CALS is also a research and development hub for the state’s life sciences and biotech industries and a driver of prosperity for North Carolina agribusiness.

Through our industry connections and commodity partners, we turn our discoveries into products and processes that shape how people feed, clothe and heal themselves.

Where City Meets Farm: The True Value of a Landmark Field Lab

In the midst of Raleigh’s urban sprawl, the Lake Wheeler Road Field Lab remains an active research farm for NC State and a critical resource for North Carolina’s largest industry.

NCARS Team

Steven Lommel

Associate Dean and Director, NC Agricultural Research Service

Laina Stensvold

University Program Specialist, NCARS

Deborah Thompson

Director of Research Partnerships

Sam Jones

Digital Communications Specialist