Two Nebraska startups get federal small-business grants | Agriculture
Two startups that are part of the Combine Incubator at Nebraska Innovation Campus have been awarded federal small-business grants.
Birds Eye Robotics and Thyreos Inc. both recently received Small Business Innovation Research grants from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
One-time Lincoln startup buys back stake held by investors
Lincoln company gets $750,000 federal contract
Birds Eye Robotics, which is based in Herman, received its $175,000 grant for the development of computer vision and a grapple mechanism for its autonomous robot that’s used for upkeep and maintenance in large poultry barns.
The poultry industry has grown from providing less than a quarter of the meat consumed in the U.S. in the 1970s to more than 50% today, and the U.S. has the world’s largest broiler industry, with over nine billion chickens produced each year, most of them in large corporate operations.
Birds Eye said its caretaker robot has operated in broiler barns for more than 1,000 hours.
People are also reading…
“We are fortunate to partner with the USDA on this opportunity and this shared vision to allow American producers to remain competitive in the global marketplace,” Birds Eye CEO Scott Niewohner said in a news release.
Thyreos, a company with offices in Lincoln and Chicago that develops both human and animal vaccines, received an SBIR grant worth $174,235 to develop a new vaccine to protect against infectious bovine rhinotracheitis, a disease that causes respiratory illness in cattle.
UNL starts its own student-led venture capital fund
Lincoln entrepreneur shifts gears to help modernize top-secret military information
The vaccine will target bovine alphaherpesvirus 1, an endemic cattle virus that can cause “shipping fever,” which results from stress placed on cattle during shipping that reactivates a latent infection and can lead to bovine rhinotracheitis. Thyreos’ technology improves vaccines that are commercially available by protecting the animal’s nervous system from herpesvirus infections that lead to the lifelong latent infection.
In addition to the SBIR grant, the company also received a $100,000 matching grant from the Nebraska Department of Economic Development.
Thyreos CEO Eric Zeece said he was pleased to receive the grant.
“BoHV-1 and associated respiratory diseases are responsible for significant costs to cattle producers,” Zeece said in a news release. “Thyreos R2 vaccines represent a new technological approach to developing alpha herpesvirus vaccines that decrease producer costs through improved efficacy and safety.”
Most valuable crops grown in Nebraska
Most valuable crops grown in Nebraska
There are more than 2 million farms in the United States, about 98% of which are operated by families, individuals, family partnerships, or family corporations, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation. About 87% of all agricultural products in America are produced on family ranches or farms. A single farm feeds an average of 166 people per year, both in the U.S. and abroad. Even so, farming is a mere sliver of the U.S. economy, representing just 1% of America’s GDP—farm and ranch families make up less than 2% of America’s population.
More African Americans are operating farms now than ever before, likewise for Hispanic and Latino farm operators. One in four farmers are beginning farmers, a term that represents those with fewer than 10 years in agriculture work—their average age is 46. About 11% of U.S. farmers served or are serving in the military.
The U.S. imports $129 billion worth of agricultural products a year, but the country maintains a positive trade balance by exporting $137 billion worth. Stacker compiled a list of the most valuable crops grown in Nebraska using data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture state agriculture overview. Crops are ranked by total annual value of production as of Feb. 2, 2022.
Keep reading to see which crops grown in Nebraska are the most valuable.
You may also like: Where people in Nebraska are moving to most
#9. Oats
– 2020 production: $5.1 million
– Top states:
— #1. South Dakota ($27.5 million)
— #2. Minnesota ($26.4 million)
— #3. Wisconsin ($20.6 million)
— #4. North Dakota ($20.1 million)
— #5. Iowa ($17.9 million)
#8. Sunflower
– 2020 production: $10.7 million
– Top states:
— #1. North Dakota ($263.7 million)
— #2. South Dakota ($220.2 million)
— #3. Minnesota ($29.5 million)
— #4. Kansas ($21.5 million)
— #5. Texas ($18.3 million)
#7. Millet
– 2020 production: $26.6 million
– Top states:
— #1. Colorado ($48.1 million)
— #2. Nebraska ($26.6 million)
— #3. South Dakota ($16.4 million)
#6. Sorghum
– 2020 production: $61.5 million
– Top states:
— #1. Kansas ($1.1 billion)
— #2. Texas ($391.6 million)
— #3. Nebraska ($61.5 million)
— #4. Oklahoma ($51.0 million)
— #5. South Dakota ($48.0 million)
#5. Potatoes
– 2020 production: $103.2 million
– Top states:
— #1. Idaho ($981.2 million)
— #2. Washington ($753.4 million)
— #3. Wisconsin ($351.0 million)
— #4. North Dakota ($278.5 million)
— #5. Colorado ($241.8 million)
You may also like: Highest rated beer in Nebraska
#4. Wheat
– 2020 production: $156.5 million
– Top states:
— #1. North Dakota ($1.6 billion)
— #2. Kansas ($1.3 billion)
— #3. Montana ($1.2 billion)
— #4. Washington ($942.4 million)
— #5. Idaho ($582.4 million)
#3. Hay & haylage
– 2020 production: $621.4 million
– Top states:
— #1. Texas ($1.5 billion)
— #2. Wisconsin ($1.1 billion)
— #3. California ($1.0 billion)
— #4. Idaho ($930.9 million)
— #5. Pennsylvania ($881.5 million)
#2. Soybeans
– 2020 production: $3.2 billion
– Top states:
— #1. Illinois ($7.0 billion)
— #2. Iowa ($5.5 billion)
— #3. Minnesota ($4.0 billion)
— #4. Indiana ($3.8 billion)
— #5. Missouri ($3.3 billion)
#1. Corn
– 2020 production: $7.6 billion
– Top states:
— #1. Iowa ($9.9 billion)
— #2. Illinois ($9.3 billion)
— #3. Nebraska ($7.6 billion)
— #4. Minnesota ($6.1 billion)
— #5. Indiana ($4.4 billion)
Reach the writer at 402-473-2647 or [email protected].
On Twitter @LincolnBizBuzz.
link