Ohio State research, expertise on display at Farm Science Review

The 2023 Ohio State University’s Farm Science Review, the 61st expo highlighting agricultural innovations, concluded its three-day run at the Molly Caren Agricultural Center in London, Ohio, this week. 

The annual show, presented by the College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences (CFAES), attracts over 100,000 visitors from across the United States and Canada. This year, total attendance was 116,786 with 7,733 students attending from over 210 schools.

Guests can learn about agriculture production from more than 4,000 products displayed by 600 commercial exhibitors. The educational programs feature Ohio State specialists at what is considered among the best in the agricultural exhibition world.

The Farm Science Review is also an opportunity to celebrate the success of the college and the university in the communities they serve. Peter Mohler, acting president and executive vice president for research, innovation and knowledge at Ohio State, spoke to a crowd of farmers, government officials, university leaders, industry partners and community stakeholders about Ohio State’s cutting-edge research and innovation partnerships.

One of the recent successes impacting the agriculture community includes Ohio State’s selection as the U.S. ground location for Starlab, the first commercial, free-flying space station in low-earth orbit.

The CFAES Stone Lab on Lake Erie also conducts research for solutions to critical water quality issues facing the region in collaboration with the University of Toledo, Bowling Green, Heidelberg University, Central State and others. 

And in partnership with Nationwide and the Ohio Farm Bureau, the AgTech Innovation Hub is an incubator for groundbreaking ideas to help the agricultural ecosystem understand, manage and mitigate climate risk with the recently announced funding of five projects.

“Thanks to projects like these, CFAES is undertaking $59 million in research across more than 1,000 active awards from federal, state, industry and university partners, many of whom are in this room today,” Mohler said.

Cathann A. Kress, vice president of agricultural administration and dean of CFAES, hosted the opening of the Farm Science Review and called attention to the mission of the college and its focus on the next generation of Ohio farmers.

“We award over $3 million in scholarships annually to our students, in large part because so many of you pay it forward and help us to do that. Our first-year retention rates are almost 95%. About 95% of our graduates are enrolled in graduate education or are employed within six months of me handing them their diploma,” she said. “The best news: Now almost 80% of CFAES graduates stay right here in the state of Ohio and continue to support our industry here in our state.”

The combination of agriculture and high-tech manufacturing is a powerful reminder of a time when the state was at its best, said Gov. Mike DeWine.

“If you go back to the history of this state, even before the Civil War, what you will find is when Ohio was at its greatest, when things were really rolling, we had two big things going for us: one was agriculture and the other was manufacturing,” he said. “This, once again, is Ohio’s time. Those two are coming together. We’re on a roll with both of them and I’m very confident about where we are going as a state.”