News
08.10.2026
EXPERIMENTAL ENZYME SHOWS PROMISE AGAINST FIRE BLIGHT DISEASE
An experimental enzyme significantly reduced fire blight in apple orchard field trials, offering growers a promising new way to fight one of the fruit industry’s most destructive diseases.
08.09.2026
CEA SUMMIT EAST OPENS WITH KEYNOTE TACKLING AGRICULTURE’S TOUGHEST CHALLENGE: GETTING CROPS TO MARKET
Indoor Ag-Con and the CEA Innovation Center today announced the opening morning keynote for the Fifth Annual Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) Summit East, taking place September 15-16, 2026, at the Institute of Advanced Learning at Research (IALR) in Danville, VA.
The Summit will open with a fireside chat titled “Grow it, Then What? Building the Bridge to Market,” featuring Kathlyn Terry Baker, CEO of Appalachian Sustainable Development (ASD), in conversation with Matthew Lohr, President of VP Strategies LLC and Virginia’s former Secretary of Agriculture and Forestry. The session takes place Tuesday, Sept. 15 from 8:45 to 9:30 AM.
08.03.2026
SECRETARY ROBERT F. KENNEDY JR TOURS DANVILLE HYDROPONICS LAB AND SOUTHSIDE REHAB FACILITY
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. traveled to Southside Virginia, touring a cutting-edge agricultural research facility and highlighting efforts to address rural health and addiction. Kennedy visited the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR) in Danville to tour its hydroponic facility, where researchers are studying ways to maximize micronutrients in the food supply. The lab specifically focuses on how to grow nutrient-dense crops without the use of chemicals.
07.07.2026
FERRUM COLLEGE STUDENT CULTIVATES A BRIGHT FUTURE THROUGH RESEARCH AND INNOVATION
From greenhouse research on campus to advanced agricultural innovation at the Institute of Advanced Learning and Research, Ferrum College senior Maranda “Gracie” Edwards is cultivating a future rooted in science, sustainability, and a lifelong passion for plants. Her achievements exemplify the experiential learning opportunities that define Ferrum College’s Agricultural Sciences program.
06.23.26
CEA SUMMIT EAST 2026 UNVEILS FULL CONFERENCE PROGRAM
Indoor Ag-Con and the CEA Innovation Center today announced the full conference program for the Fifth Annual CEA Summit East, taking place Sept. 15–16, 2026 at the Institute for Advanced Learning & Research (IALR) in Danville, Virginia. The program features four 90-minute deep-dive breakout tracks, keynote addresses, special panel presentations, and the popular CEA Industry & Research Showcase Sessions — with speakers being added to the roster daily.
06.04.26
FROM SOIL TO SALAD: HOW ENGINEERS ARE TRACKING THE HIDDEN JOURNEY OF LISTERIA
Every time you rinse fresh lettuce for a salad, slice fruit for your kids, or grab packaged produced from the grocery store, there is an invisible world traveling alongside that food: bacteria. Most of it is harmless, and some of it is helpful. But certain bacteria, like listeriosis-causing listeria, can cause serious illness if they make their way from soil into the foods we eat.
05.29.26
CANON VIRGINIA, INC. LEVERAGES IALR FACILITIES FOR COMPUTER PLANT ANOMALY DETECTION RESEARCH
Canon Virginia, Inc. (CVI) has been in collaboration with the Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR), a local research facility and political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Virginia located in Danville, Virginia and Virginia Tech’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences since 2022. CVI is using its patent-pending imaging technology to monitor plant anomalies and external factors that can inhibit plant life, such as pests, disease and temperature, inside IALR’s greenhouses and research facilities..
05.17.26
SAND-BASED AQUAPONICS SYSTEM OFFERS MORE AFFORDABLE PATH FOR FARMING IN WATER-SCARCE REGIONS
How do you solve the growing gap between agriculture demand and decreasing land availability? According to new research from the VT College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, you farm in something that is inexpensive, plentiful, and everywhere on Earth: sand.
11.05.25
CEA INNOVATION CENTER AWARDED GRANT TO ADVANCE BOK CHOY RESEARCH IN CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENT AGRICULTURE
The Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR) will evaluate bok choy as a new crop for controlled environment agriculture systems at the Virginia Tech- IALR Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) Innovation Center. This two year research project will focus on optimizing bok choy production in hydroponic systems and developing protocols for small and mid sized farms. This two year research is funded by a $62,048 grant from the Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (VDACS).
