Announcement

Sharpen your seed health testing skills this October 7-9 by attending the Seed Health Testing Workshop, sponsored by the National Seed Health System (NSHS) and the Online Graduate Program in Seed Technology and Business.

Who Should Attend?

This workshop is designed for early-career seed lab technicians who are actively involved in testing. Attendees will gain hands-on laboratory training with the support of expert staff.

(Washington, D.C., August 1, 2025) – U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced today the opening of a 30-day public comment period for stakeholders to provide feedback on the Department’s reorganization plan, as outlined in the Secretary’s memorandum (PDF, 2.6 MB) issued on July 24, 2025.

This presentation highlights the continued need for Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and outlines strategic goals for strengthening the public IPM enterprise. Despite shifts to competitive funding following the 2008 Farm Bill, a national network of 53 state programs and 4 regional centers has been maintained. The focus now is on enhancing collaboration, improving infrastructure, increasing IPM awareness, and expanding involvement beyond traditional pest disciplines.

This summer, two laboratories, the University of Rhode Island (URI) and the University of Maine (UME), achieved Core Accreditation. URI, under the leadership of Laboratory Quality Manager Keiddy Urrea-Morawicki, became accredited on August 1, 2025. UME, with Alicyn Smart and Stephanie Shea serving as Laboratory Quality Managers, earned its accreditation earlier on June 1, 2025. With these additions, a total of four labs have now achieved Core Accreditation, while five more have applied and are currently in various stages of the review process.

Request for isolates of Phytophthora nicotianae from  Annual Vinca (Catharanthus roseus)

Come join us at the NPDN Town Hall during the American Phytopathological Society Hawaii meeting! This will be an open forum on August 4 from 3:30-pm-5:30pm in room 319 B. 

Greetings Oak Wilt Testing Community, 

At PureBIoX we are excited to announce that, thanks to a recent partnership with the University of Minnesota, our oak wilt rapid detection kit -- AgroLAMP™ Oak Wilt Kit -- will be free of charge for academic and state laboratories for the 2025 season. More details can be found here.

Saturday, August 2 • 1:00–5:00 p.m. • $89

Reposted announcement! USDA lab is still looking for specimens.

NPDN would like to announce the release of the 2024 Lab Capacity and Impact Evaluation Survey Answers Report. The NPDN Annual Lab Capacity And Impact Evaluation survey is a questionnaire designed to survey the diagnostic capacity, capability, and contributions of diagnostic labs in NPDN. The 2024 survey received 73 responses from NPDN labs in 53 states and territories. View the 2024 answers analysis HERE