VAES and Research

About us
In the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, our ambition to help communities flourish is at the center of what we do. CALS has identified four major strengths — food, health, economy, and environment — that we will use to address the shared challenges facing our world. By working together, we can all thrive.
Our research focuses on:
- Comprehensive health & wellness
- Community empowerment
- Predictive environmental solutions
- Cultivating lifelong learners
- Resilience and productivity through innovation
The Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station (VAES) is the research enterprise for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, including academic departments and off-campus agricultural research and Extension centers (ARECs). Our team includes >350 scientists located in three colleges on the VT campus: College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS), College of Natural Resources and Environment (CNRE), and Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine (VMCVM). VAES, along with our partner Virginia Cooperative Extension, comprise the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Agency 229. Together with our partners across Virginia and around the world, the National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), VAES scientists and engineers are bringing innovation and securing agriculture, food, and health through basic and applied research.
Departmental research
Faculty at the Department of Agricultural and Applied Economics maintain research programs that address a wide array of topics that impact both Virginians and people around the world. Research is conducted in five broad areas: agribusiness, environmental and natural resource economics, food and health economics, international development and trade, and rural and regional development.
The Department of Agricultural, Leadership, and Community Education focuses on three core program areas: teaching and learning in agriculture, leadership and social change, and community education and development. Faculty and graduate students have responsibilities in the missions of each core area: teaching, research, and Extension.
The School of Animal Sciences main research objective is to optimize efficiency of animal production, while maintaining or enhancing the environment. The research programs focus on applied science, which has an immediate application to animal agriculture, and basic science, which provides scientific foundation for further basic and applied research discoveries.
We are involved in generating new tools and knowledge that will advance our understanding of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases, Drug Discovery, Microbiology, Stress Responses in Plants, Alzheimer’s, Cancer and Type 2 Diabetes. Faculty recruit graduate students from our own PhD and MS programs, as well as students from the Microbiology, Translational Plant Sciences, Genetics, Bioinformatics and Computational Biology (GBCB) and Translational Medicine and Biomedical Health (TMBH) graduate programs on campus.
Our faculty and students work in a broad range of biological systems, from natural systems, such as watersheds with a focus on water resources, to built systems, such as bioreactors and bioprocessing facilities. We work from the nanoscale to the macroscale. We seek to improve animal, human, and environmental health through development and design of healthy food products, vaccines, bioenergy, biomaterials, and water quality management practices. We convert biological resources, such as switchgrass, plant proteins, and animal manure, into value-added products, such as biopharmaceuticals, biofuels, and biomaterials, in a sustainable manner.
Research in the Department of Dairy Science falls under the following four categories:
- Physiology
- Nutrition & Feeding
- Breeding Genetics
- Forage Evaluation & Management
Our scientists explore the diversity, benefits and risks of insects everywhere, in our crops, forests, water and homes. The Department's work includes biomedical research on vector-borne diseases, description and discovery of new species, evaluation of water quality through the insects living there, pollinator biology, smart and sustainable management of pests wherever they occur, and more.
Departmental research areas are internationally recognized for cutting edge, industry-revelant research in protecting public health, enhancing food quality and making technological advancements in the field of food science.
HNFE's unique fusion of nutrition, foods, and exercise science positions us to advance knowledge in education, prevention, research, and translational studies. Collaborative interactions among faculty are strong and span from cells to society.
Research in the School of Plant and Environmental Sciences is broken up into the following four communities:
- Ecosystem Science and Management Community
- Plant Health and Improvement
- Plant Production Systems
- Agroenvironmental Information Systems Community
Research in action
Virginia Agricultural Experiment Station (VAES)
VAES performs basic and applied research on agricultural, environmental, natural, and community resource issues related to the future needs of Virginia — and the world.
Agricultural Research and Extension Centers (ARECs)
ARECs deliver research and Extension programs, serve as field-research sites and field laboratories, and are program sites for producers, school groups, and the state's citizens.
Latest CALS research updates
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Article ItemVirginia's oyster population boom driven by complex interplay of natural and human-driven factors, suggests Virginia Tech seafood researcher , article
A recent boom in Virginia’s oyster population can be attributed to a complex interplay of natural and human-driven factors, says a Virginia Tech expert.
Date: 03.16.2023 -
Article ItemVirginia Tech researchers receive National Science Foundation award to secure vegetable production in a changing environment , article
Researchers in the Center for Advanced Innovation in Agriculture and the Virginia Tech Applied Research Cooperation will use the $750,000 Convergence Accelerator program grant to develop climate-smart, economically efficient, and environmentally sustainable precision agricultural practices.
Date: 03.14.2023 -
Article ItemTart, sour, or sweet? Virginia Tech researchers create hard cider lexicon for accurate, shared descriptions , article
The sensory descriptive analysis study resulted in 33 terms that will aid in cider quality communication and in the production of hard cider.
Date: 03.02.2023 -
Article ItemBringing new life to degraded forests in Madagascar , article
Deforestation is threatening Madagascar's biodiversity due to the fact that more than 40 percent of its forests have been cleared over the past 70 years.The government has committed to restoring 4 million hectares, and a team of researchers in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences explored techniques to improve plantings during eastern Madagascar’s dry season.
Date: 03.02.2023 -
Article ItemVirginia’s Land Use-Value Assessment Program keeps more than 43,000 acres in farmland , article
Land use-value assessment, which supports the preservation and typically the reduction of the tax burden on owners of land used in producing food, fiber, and timber, is found in some form in every state.
Date: 03.01.2023 -
Article ItemUnearthing the impact of moisture on soil carbon processes , article
A new paper reveals the critical role that moisture plays in the cycling and sequestration of soil carbon.
Date: 02.07.2023
Saied Mostaghimi
Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Studies, Director of VAES
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Kang Xia
Interim Associate Director of VAES, Interim Director of the Center for Advanced Innovation in Agriculture (CAIA)
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Contact
104 Hutcheson Hall (0402)
Virginia Tech
Blacksburg, VA 24061
Phone: (540) 231-6336
Fax: (540) 231-4163