SRAC: The RACs

Click on the map above to visit each region's homepage.

 

About the RACs:

The Regional Aquaculture Centers encourage cooperative and collaborative research and extension education programs in aquaculture having regional or national application. Center programs complement and strengthen existing research and extension educational programs provided by USDA and other public institutions.

The mission of the Centers is to support aquaculture research, development, demonstration, and education to enhance viable and profitable U.S. aquaculture production to benefit consumers, producers, service industries, and the American economy. Projects that are developed and funded by the Regonal Centers are based on industry needs and are designed to directly impact commercial aquaculture development in all states and territories. The Centers are organized to take advantage of the best aquaculture science, education skills, and facilities in the United States. Center programs insure effective coordination and a region-wide, team approach to projects jointly conducted by research, extension, government, and industry personnel. Inter-agency collaboration and shared funding are strongly encouraged.

Learn more about each Regional Center below by clicking on the link and going to their homepage.

Center for Tropical and Subtropical Aquaculture

The Center for Tropical and Subtropical Aquaculture was created to spark the development of commercial aquaculture of tropical and subtropical species. Unlike the other centers, which work within a defined geographical region, the CTSA “region” encompasses tropical and subtropical species wherever they are cultured within the United States and the U.S.-affiliated Pacific islands (American Samoa, Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, Hawaii, Republic of Palau, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands.) Research projects span the American Insular Pacific, focusing on developing an aquaculture industry using commercially viable tropical and subtropical species.

Northeastern Regional Aquaculture Center

The Northeastern Regional Aquaculture Center (NRAC) is headquartered at University of Maryland, College Park. NRAC represents 12 states and the District of Columbia, NRAC develops and sponsors cooperative regional research and extension projects in support of the aquaculture industry in the northeastern United States. States inclued in this region are: Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, West Virginia.

North Central Regional Aquaculture Center

The North Central Regional Aquaculture Center (NCRAC) is one of the five Regional Aquaculture Centers established by Congress that are administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). NCRAC is an administrative unit that serves the twelve states in the North Central Region: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.

Western Regional Aquaculture Center

WRAC strives to improve sustainable and profitable commercial aquaculture production in the United States, benefiting both producers and consumers and contributing to the national economy.

The Western Regional Aquaculture Center (WRAC) was formed with the goals of utilizing the prevailing aquaculture science, educational expertise, and infrastructure across a dozen states that include: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon,  Utah, Washington, Wyoming

Universities joining from these states function under a Memorandum of Understanding, ensuring "joint commitment and co-equal status" throughout the WRAC region.