Recent Posts

Institute News

Starting the Year Off with a “BAM”

 By Staff Writer KANNAPOLIS, N.C. – NC State University’s Plants for Human Health Institute (PHHI) is kicking off 2020 with the start of its first clinical research trial, the...
Features, Institute News

How Epigenetics Could Change How We Grow Food

 By Staff Writer To understand epigenetics, nutrition, and the work of Dr. Tzung-Fu Hsieh, it helps to begin long before he was even born, back during World War...
Institute News

New Faculty: Andrew Neilson

 By Staff Writer KANNAPOLIS, N.C. – The interaction of the gut microbiome with human health is an emerging field in biology, nutrition and medicine.  With the addition of Andrew Neilson,...
Institute News

New Faculty: Abdulkerim Eroğlu

 By Staff Writer Abdulkerim “Kerim” Eroğlu, PhD, set up his nutrigenomics lab at the NC Research Campus in August 2018 when he joined the Plants for Human Health...
Institute News

High School Culinary Student finds Recipe for Success

 By Staff Writer KANNAPOLIS, NC — For an eager culinary arts student, the challenge was intriguing: Find a palatable culinary use for watermelon concentrate. Samuel Jijon (Sammy), a...
Institute News

Bowman leads PHHI-based STEM session at Grow Academy

 By Staff Writer North Carolina high school teachers have a unique new opportunity to gain hands-on experience in agriculture and life sciences education, thanks to NC State’s new...
Institute News

A new spin on Carrot Cake just in time for Easter

 By Staff Writer KANNAPOLIS, N.C. – Carrot cake may be on the menu for upcoming Easter celebrations, but you’ve probably never tried a carrot cake that has no...
Institute News

Results Feature Article Reaps Award of Excellence

 By oitdesign The feature article, Reaping a Healthy Harvest, recently won an Award of Excellence in the “Best Article of the Year” category at the southeast regional conference of...
Institute News

The Power of Blueberries (Today’s Dietitian)

 By Staff Writer Dr. Mary Ann Lila was featured in a Today's Dietitian article illustrating the powerful phytochemicals and health benefits associated with the blueberry. Studies suggest that blueberries can be effective against cancer, diabetes and neurocognitive diseases, as well as support heart health and memory.
Institute News

PHHI Hiring Small Fruit/Vegetable Researcher

 By Staff Writer PHHI is hiring a faculty member to lead a genomics program in small fruits and/or vegetables. The successful candidate’s research will focus on genetics, genomics, germplasm improvement and breeding of small fruits (strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, etc.) and/or vegetable crops.
Institute News

Duke Energy Foundation Grants $150K to P2EP

 By Staff Writer The Duke Energy Foundation has renewed their support of the North Carolina Research Campus-based, Plant Pathways Elucidation Project (P2EP) with a contribution of $150,000.
Institute News

PHHI Researchers Link Alaska Seaweed to Efficacy Against Diabetes, Obesity

 By Staff Writer PHHI scientists were featured in an Alaska Dispatch article highlighting their discovery of powerful health-promoting phytochemicals in seaweed. The findings suggest that seaweed may provide protection against conditions like obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular diseases.
Institute News

Reaping a Healthy Harvest: Results Cover Story

 By Staff Writer The latest issue of Results, published by N.C. State University's Office of Research, Innovation and Economic Development, features PHHI Director Dr. Mary Ann Lila on the cover. The story captures the spirit of Lila's work and the mission of the Plants for Human Health Institute.
Institute News

PHHI Hiring Nutrition-related Extension Associate

 By Staff Writer PHHI is hiring for a nutrition-­related position with its N.C. Cooperative Extension team. The position will be responsible for creating a nutrition-­oriented program to develop research-based resources that educate people about the health-­promoting characteristics of plants.
Institute News

Blueberry Benefits | Growing Magazine

 By Staff Writer Dr. Mary Ann Lila, director of the Plants for Human Health Institute, was featured in Growing Magazine's January 2014 issue.
Institute News

PHHI Featured on UNC-TV

 By Staff Writer The Plants for Human Health Institute (PHHI), and director Dr. Mary Ann Lila, were featured on UNC-TV's "North Carolina Now" program.
Institute News

N.C. Cooperative Extension Service Mapping its Future

 By Staff Writer The North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service has launched a strategic visioning and planning initiative to evaluate the organization’s business model, adapt accordingly to the current economic environment and devise a strategy going forward.
Institute News

N.C. State Program Awards Funding to Expand 20 Agricultural Businesses

 By Staff Writer The North Carolina Value-Added Cost Share (NCVACS) program, coordinated in part by the Plants for Human Health Institute's Extension component, has announced $311,938 in equipment cost share awards for 20 agricultural operations across the state.
Institute News

N.C. State Announces Plans to Expand Farm Management Training

 By Staff Writer The North Carolina State University Department of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ARE) will conduct four Farm Management Training Schools, patterned after the award winning “Piedmont Farm School,” in 2014-2015.
Institute News

N.C. State Scientists Searching for Salmonella

 By Staff Writer A team of North Carolina State University scientists is looking for Salmonella on tomatoes and around tomato production areas. What they find could help farmers grow tomatoes that have a decreased likelihood of carrying the harmful bacteria.
Institute News

Researchers study impacts of cooking methods on blueberry benefits

 By Staff Writer In a scientific study, researchers with N.C. State's Plants for Human Health Institute measured the levels of health-promoting phytochemicals in blueberries after putting them through a variety of cooking methods. The results revealed a decline in certain compounds depending on cooking method.
Institute News

PHHI Researchers Recognized with Awards

 By Staff Writer Three faculty and staff with N.C. State University's Plants for Human Health Institute (PHHI) have been acknowledged for their respective efforts in 2013.
Institute News

Whole Grains: Addressing the Challenges, Maximizing the Potential

 By Staff Writer Dr. Tzung-Fu Hsieh from the Plants for Human Health Institute is leading research on grains to provide new insights into how scientists can impact seed size, nutritional value and other traits valued by farmers and consumers.
Institute News

PHHI Initiates Biodiscovery Partnership in Malaysia

 By Staff Writer PHHI's Dr. Slavko Komarnytsky will make the first steps in establishing long-standing collaboration with the International Medical University of Malaysia (IMU). Ultimately, the project will focus on engaging scientists from developing countries in both local and global human health research.
Institute News

North Carolina agriculture continues to grow

 By Staff Writer Agriculture and agribusiness — food, fiber and forestry — continue to grow in North Carolina, according to a new study from N.C. State University. The latest data values the N.C. agriculture industry at $77 billion, more than 17 percent of the state's total economy.
Institute News

Agbiosciences drive economic growth, job creation in the Southern U.S.

 By Staff Writer Amid news of a still sputtering U.S. economic recovery, a report shows the nation’s agbioscience industries are growing, especially in the South. According to the study, agriculture, forestry and fisheries production generates $240 billion in regional economic activity within the Southern region and supports over 2.2 million jobs.
Institute News

PHHI Research, Extension Collaboration Wins Award

 By Staff Writer PHHI's Pack 'N Cool mobile refrigeration unit received a 2013 Blue Ribbon Extension Communication Award from the Southern Region of the American Society of Horticultural Science.
Institute News

New CALS Dean Richard Linton Tours PHHI

 By Staff Writer New College of Agriculture and Life Sciences dean Richard Linton toured the North Carolina Research Campus, including the Plants for Human Health Institute, on November 7, 2012.
Institute News

Ecuadorian President Visits the N.C. Research Campus, PHHI

 By Staff Writer President Rafael Correa of the Republic of Ecuador and a delegation of ministers spent October 30, 2012, touring the N.C. Research Campus (NCRC) in Kannapolis, including N.C. State University's Plants for Human Health Institute.
Institute News

N.C. State Snags New Plant Scientist, Continues Growth at N.C. Research Campus

 By Staff Writer The Plants for Human Health Institute continues its expansion efforts by adding another established scientist to its team at the N.C. Research Campus in Kannapolis. Dr. Tzung-Fu Hsieh is developing a research program centered on the biological systems of flowering plants, including fruits and vegetables.
Institute News

Pack ‘N Cool Construction Summary

 By Staff Writer N.C. State University’s Plants for Human Health Institute has developed a mobile refrigeration trailer – the “Pack ‘N Cool” – that agricultural producers can use...
Institute News

N.C. State University Opens Greenhouse Complex by N.C. Research Campus

 By Staff Writer N.C. State’s Plants for Human Health Institute has begun operations at three new greenhouses in Kannapolis. The $340,000 greenhouse complex will strengthen N.C. State’s infrastructure at the N.C. Research Campus, creating about 10,000 square feet of additional space.
Institute News

PHHI Postdoc Jump-starts Campus Collaboration

 By Staff Writer At the North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis, the N.C. State University Plants for Human Health Institute and the Dole Nutrition Research Laboratory have collaborated to form a joint industry-academic postdoctoral position, the first of its kind at the campus.
Institute News

PHHI Business Director Wins Award for Excellence

 By Staff Writer Tara Vogelien received a 2012 Award for Excellence from N.C. State’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. The award annually recognizes outstanding individual accomplishments and contributions to the college mission.
Institute News

Graduate Students Affiliated with PHHI Win Awards

 By phhi_admin Graduate students of Dr. Penelope Perkins-Veazie, professor with N.C. State Plants for Human Health Institute, were recently recognized for their research projects at the American Society of Horticultural Science (ASHS) Southern Region meeting in Birmingham, Ala.
Institute News

PHHI Lays Groundwork for Cabbage Breeding Program

 By phhi_admin Two scientists with the N.C. State University Plants for Human Health Institute at the N.C. Research Campus in Kannapolis are studying more than 300 cabbage varieties as part of the initial phase in a cabbage breeding program.
Institute News

N.C. MarketReady Announces 2012 Equipment Funding for Agricultural Operations

 By Staff Writer The North Carolina Value-Added Cost Share program is accepting applications for the 2012 equipment cost share funding cycle. The program provides up to $50,000 to agricultural producers and processors seeking to purchase specialized equipment to start or grow a value-added operation.
Institute News

New N.C. Blackberry Production Budget Available

 By Staff Writer North Carolina blackberry growers have an updated sample operating budget to guide them in tracking, maintaining and managing their business costs.
Institute News

PHHI Researcher Receives Vegetable Publication Award

 By Staff Writer Dr. Penelope Perkins-Veazie, a postharvest physiologist with the Plants for Human Health Institute, received the 2011 Vegetable Publication Award from the American Society for Horticultural Science.
Institute News

N.C. MarketReady Faculty Teach Business Planning at Piedmont Farm School

 By Staff Writer Two N.C. State University faculty members based at the N.C. Research Campus will be instructors in the 2012 Piedmont Farm School, presented by N.C. Cooperative Extension. Mike Roberts and Jonathan Baros, both affiliated with the N.C. State agricultural and resource economics department, will teach business planning seminars. Baros is also a member of N.C. MarketReady, the Cooperative Extension outreach of the Plants for Human Health Institute.
Institute News

N.C. MarketReady Awards 2011 Equipment Cost Share

 By Staff Writer The N.C. Value-Added Cost Share (NCVACS) program, administered by N.C. MarketReady, recently selected 12 agricultural operations to receive nearly $170,000 in funding for value-added equipment purchases.
Institute News

PHHI Adds Two Scientists at the N.C. Research Campus

 By Staff Writer The Plants for Human Health Institute will add two more scientists to its faculty in the summer of 2011. Dr. Slavko Komarnytsky and Dr. Xu Li will research fruits and vegetables and their impact on human health.
Institute News

“Chefs-of-Tomorrow” Visit Local Farm to Learn About Agriculture

 By Staff Writer More than 30 culinary students from Johnson & Wales University visited a local farm and agricultural research station on April 1, 2011, as part of the N.C. Strawberry Project, a first-of-its-kind partnership between North Carolina State University’s Plants for Human Health Institute at the N.C. Research Campus in Kannapolis and Johnson & Wales University.
Institute News

New Farm & Agribusiness Management Position Helps Fresh Produce Growers

 By phhi_admin N.C. MarketReady welcomes Jonathan Baros as the new farm and agribusiness management specialist. He will develop and sustain programs that help N.C. fruit and vegetable producers explore efficient economic options and optimize profits for their farming operations.
Institute News

Fresh Produce Safety Trainings Make an Impact in 2010

 By phhi_admin The N.C. MarketReady Fresh Produce Safety – Field to Family Good Agricultural Practices (GAPs) Training Curriculum is bearing fruit for the nearly 300 growers and more than 120 Extension agents who have completed the training. Read more to find examples of the impacts the training is having on N.C. farms.
Institute News

Nooherooka Natural: Delivering Value-Added Beef in Eastern North Carolina

 By phhi_admin Nooherooka Natural, a farm that specializes in Black Angus beef in Snow Hill, NC, received an N.C. Value-Added Cost Share (NCVACS) award. The business is at a pivotal stage of growth where demand for their product could outpace supply without careful inventory management. Read more to find out how the award will help their operation.
Institute News

Bobcat Farms: A Family Livestock Operation Looking to Diversify

 By phhi_admin Henry and Tracy Moore of Bobcat Farms in Clinton, N.C., recently received an N.C. Value-Added Cost Share (NCVACS) award. The Moore’s began their farming operation as pork production, but have been adding Black Angus cattle to their livestock mix. They plan to expand their beef business through branding and marketing to provide further financial diversity and security for the farm.
Institute News

Hyde County Vegetable Growers Venture into Processed, Fresh Vegetables

 By phhi_admin Wilson and Debbie Daughtry, owners of Alligator River Growers in Engelhard, N.C., on behalf of three Hyde county farms and Parker Farms, in southeastern Virginia, were recipients of an N.C. Value-Added Cost Share (NCVACS) award. These vegetable growers are looking to establish a packaging business for fresh produce, including snap beans, sweet corn and broccoli florets, creating a ready to cook product.
Institute News

Governor Expands N.C. Value-Added Cost Share Program

 By phhi_admin Gov. Beverly Perdue announced a package of programs, the Family Farm Innovation Fund, to help North Carolina farmers rebound from the recession. The N.C. Value-Added Cost Share program (NCVACS), administered by N.C. MarketReady, will receive $150,000 from the Family Farm Innovation Fund, as well as an additional $150,000 from the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission to expand its equipment cost share program for value-added producers and processors of N.C. agricultural commodities.
Institute News

N.C. MarketReady Team Members Receive Awards

 By phhi_admin The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) recently recognized Dr. Blake Brown and Diane Ducharme of the N.C. MarketReady program for achievements in their respective areas. Dr. Brown received the Faculty Resource Development Award and Ducharme accepted an Award for Excellence.
Institute News

The Produce Lady Offers Healthy, Economical Options for Easter Eating

 By phhi_admin The Produce Lady is encouraging North Carolinians to invest more of their holiday food budgets in local foods and healthy eating this Easter. Find recipes and tips to share a community’s fresh produce to family and friends while supporting the local economy.
Institute News

N.C. MarketReady Announces Spring Cost Share Cycle for Value-Added Equipment

 By phhi_admin The North Carolina Value-Added Cost Share (NCVACS) program, administered by N.C. MarketReady, is now accepting applications for the spring funding cycle, Equipment Cost Share. This program is funded by the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission to support the development of value-added agricultural operations, an emerging sector of North Carolina agriculture. Applicants can seek to purchase new or used equipment with cost share funding. Equipment cost share awards will vary from 25 to 50 percent of the total cost of the equipment, up to a maximum of $25,000.
Institute News

N.C. MarketReady Is New Name for the Value-Added Agriculture Program

 By phhi_admin N.C. State University's Program for Value-Added & Alternative Agriculture will become N.C. MarketReady, effective Oct. 20. "We are excited about this new name," said Dr. Blake Brown, the director of the program. "The new name, N.C. MarketReady, more accurately communicates the scope of our program's work."
Institute News

September Is Food Safety Month

 By phhi_admin N.C. Cooperative Extension, in cooperation with the N.C. Fresh Produce Safety Task Force, is leading an initiative to educate fruit and vegetable growers and consumers about measures that can minimize food safety risks. The organization has received more than $250,000 in grant funding to support the statewide Extension and research effort.
Institute News

N.C. State Launches a New Online Resource for N.C. Strawberry Growers

 By phhi_admin When a question about strawberries comes to mind there’s no need to go globetrotting across the World Wide Web, one stop at the recently launched Strawberry Growers Information Portal will provide the answer. The N.C. State University Program for Value-Added & Alternative Agriculture, with a grant from the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission, developed the Strawberry Growers Information Portal to bring together on one Website all the resources pertaining to business management and production of strawberries in North Carolina.
Institute News

N.C. State Announces $1.2 Million Value-Added Cost Share Program to Help Farmers

 By phhi_admin The N.C. State University Program for Value-Added & Alternative Agriculture, in cooperation with the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission, announces the N.C. Value-Added Cost Share (NCVACS) program, which is designed to enhance rural economic development and strengthen farm families. This new $1.2 million effort is funded by the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission to support the development of value-added agricultural operations.
Institute News

N.C. State University Introduces Online Tools to Grow N.C. Farmers’ Businesses

 By phhi_admin The “Business Development Files,” for small- to mid-size farmers, offer step-by-step advice for those interested in building or expanding an agricultural business. This resource consists of seven files, or steps, that each provide guidance on various aspects of developing an agricultural business, from estimating market potential to marketing and promotion.
Institute News

South Rowan High School Students Shadow N.C. State Staff at the Research Campus

 By phhi_admin Two South Rowan High School students are part of a new program that N.C. State University has implemented at the N.C. Research Campus to expose local teens to the many possibilities when it comes to the work world. The teens were selected to “shadow” or spend at least one and one-half hours each week for a semester with N.C. State faculty and staff at the campus.
Institute News

N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission Helps Grow the Value-Added Web Site

 By phhi_admin The TTFC highlights the Program for Value-Added & Alternative Agriculture website in its May newsletter. The Produce Lady, fresh produce safety information and other resources are available on this site with the assistance of TTFC funding.
Older Posts