By Frank Giles
The annual Florida Ag Expo, which is held in early November at the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC), took a break this year to make way for the recognition of two milestones — the center’s centennial celebration and groundbreaking for the Center for Applied Artificial Intelligence in Agriculture.
LEADING THE WAY
The event drew about 900 growers, current and retired UF/IFAS faculty, lawmakers and other industry stakeholders. In its beginnings, GCREC started with a lone tomato breeder followed by a strawberry breeder who developed the standard varieties grown in Central Florida. That tradition continues today for both crops, but the center has grown and added more crops, ag practices and people to its roster.
Jack Rechcigl, GCREC director, was the master of ceremonies during the event and expressed gratitude for all the support the local community had given the center over the years through various transitions. He also welcomed and introduced a lineup of past faculty members and others who have played a key role in the success of the center. Today, the facility is home to more than 240 researchers, staff and graduate students.
Kenneth Parker, the executive director of the Florida Strawberry Growers Association, said the center embodies the importance of relationships. The success of GCREC, he said, has been built by making sure the scientists go beyond the lab and get into the fields of the growers they serve. He added this has built caring relationships between the growers and scientists and good research.
“I’ve seen firsthand how much relationships matter in this industry,” Parker said. “These are the moments where people care enough to go beyond their job descriptions and simply show up for one another.”
BREAKING AI GROUND
The second milestone celebrated during the event was the groundbreaking ceremony for the Center for Applied Artificial Intelligence in Agriculture. Industry stakeholders came together to campaign for the facility, which will further the lead UF/IFAS is taking in AI research.
Scott Angle, senior vice president of UF/IFAS Agriculture and Natural Resources, led the groundbreaking ceremony and welcomed the lawmakers and other leaders who pushed for the more than $30 million required to get the facility built at GCREC.
“Today, we celebrate a great leap forward,” Angle said. “We now begin in earnest to build in brick and mortar what has previously been largely an idea, message and an aspiration. Today, we plant a flag in the ground to signal to the nation and the world that Florida is where AI comes to change the way we produce food, fuel, fiber and feed.”
The Center for Applied Artificial Intelligence in Agriculture is slated for completion in 2027.