2021 Cochran Fellowship Program - U.S. Pesticide System Study Tour | USDA FAS 10962 0700 10 21 0004

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA FAS 10962 0700 10 21 0004

The 2021 Cochran Fellowship Program - U.S. Pesticide System Study Tour is a discretionary USDA Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS) grant that funds the design and delivery of an in-person training program in the United States focused on how the U.S. regulates pesticides and sets maximum residue limits (MRLs). The opportunity sits within the long-running Cochran Fellowship Program, which has been funded by Congress since 1984 to bring mid- to senior-level agricultural specialists and administrators from eligible countries to the United States for practical, policy-relevant training. In this special initiative, the emphasis is on strengthening foreign regulatory capacity and encouraging greater alignment of pesticide registration systems and residue standards with risk-based approaches used in the United States and reflected in international standard-setting processes.

At a policy level, the grant is motivated by two linked challenges USDA highlights. First, many countries struggle to access newer, lower-risk pesticide products because of regulatory capacity gaps or slow, inconsistent approval pathways. Second, even when products are available, trade can be disrupted when residue standards differ widely between markets or are missing entirely, creating uncertainty for exporters and importers. USDA frames improved regulatory alignment, greater use of Codex MRLs where appropriate, and the adoption of import tolerances as practical tools to reduce unnecessary trade barriers while still protecting consumer health. The broader trade rationale is explicit: more harmonized, science- and risk-based standards abroad can support market access for U.S. agricultural exports while also improving partners' domestic oversight and enforcement systems.

The funded activity requires an awardee (generally a U.S. higher education institution, public or private) to build and run a comprehensive study-tour style training for 24 foreign government officials who regulate and study pesticides in their home countries. Participants are drawn as two fellows each from 12 priority countries spanning three regions: Brazil, Colombia, Ghana, Guatemala, Indonesia, Kenya, Nigeria, Peru, Philippines, South Africa, Thailand, and Vietnam. Rather than hosting a single cohort, the recipient is expected to deliver three separate but identical training sessions, likely grouped by region (Latin America, Africa, and Asia), scheduled at intervals agreed upon with FAS during the period of performance. The training is expected to take place in the United States and may involve multiple states or cities, reflecting the intention to expose fellows to a range of agencies, laboratories, private-sector actors, and real-world implementation settings.

The main objective is to broaden fellows' understanding of the full U.S. pesticide system and to build support for risk-based regulatory approaches and international standards. In practice, that means the agenda should connect how pesticides are evaluated, registered, monitored, and enforced across the U.S. government, and how those domestic processes tie into international trade rules and standards discussions. The program is meant to be comprehensive, covering not only the mechanics of registration and MRL setting, but also surveillance programs, laboratory quality systems, data requirements, emergency use mechanisms, and the ways government, industry, and public-interest stakeholders interact in the U.S. model.

The learning goals are detailed and wide-ranging. Fellows are expected to come away with a clear picture of which U.S. entities do what in pesticide oversight, including the Environmental Protection Agency, Food and Drug Administration, and relevant USDA components such as the Agricultural Marketing Service and APHIS, and how those institutions coordinate. The curriculum is expected to cover the U.S. legal framework, guidelines, and standards; the role of the private sector; the process for establishing MRLs; and the U.S. import tolerance program. It also emphasizes the technical backbone of regulation: how efficacy and residue data are generated, what registration formats and data packages look like, and how risk assessment is performed. Special topics include emergency use regulations, biopesticide registration and use, and the practical realities of sampling, monitoring, and surveillance for both domestic products and imports. A major operational theme is laboratory capability, including pesticide residue diagnostics and Good Laboratory Practices (GLP), as well as how agencies communicate with the public and engage with non-governmental organizations on pesticide issues.

International engagement is another core pillar. The training is expected to explain the roles of international standard-setting bodies relevant to pesticides and biopesticides, with particular attention to the Codex Committee on Pesticide Residues and how Codex standards are developed and used. It also calls for coverage of World Trade Organization Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) Committee engagement, helping fellows understand how pesticide-related measures can affect trade and how countries raise and resolve concerns. In addition, the agenda should contrast risk-based approaches with hazard-based approaches, including discussion of the precautionary principle and how it can shape regulatory outcomes. The opportunity also explicitly asks for an overview of the European Union approach to pesticide regulation and the downstream impacts that approach can have on trading partners, referencing the kinds of analytical perspectives produced by the U.S. International Trade Commission and USDA's Economic Research Service.

From an implementation standpoint, the awardee is responsible for end-to-end program logistics and costs. That includes arranging and paying for international and domestic airfare, local transportation, visa fees, lodging, travel insurance, and meals and incidental expenses for fellows. The recipient must also secure venues, equipment, speakers, and technical experts, and provide U.S.-based staff to accompany and manage fellows throughout the U.S. program. Agenda development is collaborative: the awardee works closely with FAS to shape a daily schedule that meets the learning objectives and includes exposure to key public and private stakeholders involved in pesticide regulation, compliance, and trade. FAS also coordinates candidate identification from the priority countries, working with the awardee on selection and participation.

A distinctive feature of this opportunity is the required coordination with a separate USDA Special Initiative Borlaug Program covering similar themes. That Borlaug component is expected to host four researchers focused on generating efficacy and residue data through field trials to support MRL establishment. The Cochran awardee is expected to collaborate with the Borlaug host institution(s) so the two efforts reinforce one another, with the collaboration scope defined with FAS ahead of the performance period. USDA staff may accompany training activities at their own expense, handling their own logistics, while participating in the technical and programmatic engagement.

Administratively, the opportunity is listed under CFDA 10.962 and is managed by USDA under the Cochran Fellowship Program (international training). Eligible applicants are public and state-controlled institutions of higher education and private institutions of higher education. The funding opportunity number is USDA FAS 10962 0700 10 21 0004, with an award ceiling of $300,000 and an expected single award. The notice was created June 25, 2021, with an original closing date of July 30, 2021. Overall, the grant is best understood as funding a highly structured, multi-cohort U.S. study tour that blends regulatory policy, technical residue science, laboratory and surveillance practices, and international trade and standards engagement, all aimed at strengthening partner-country pesticide regulatory systems while reducing friction in agricultural trade.

• The Department of Agriculture, Cochran Fellowship Prog-Intl Trng 10.962 in the agriculture sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "2021 Cochran Fellowship Program - U.S. Pesticide System Study Tour" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.962.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 25, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 30, 2021. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $300,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

Apply for USDA FAS 10962 0700 10 21 0004

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