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The general goal of the project is the application of multidisciplinary research to improve the competitiveness of Pacific Northwest agriculture in the world marketplace. Our priorities include: <OL> <LI> Economic effects of changing markets, policies and trading rules including technical barriers to trade (TBT), sanitary and phytosanitay (SPS) barriers, biotechnology, food safety, bioeconomics, invasive species, bioterrorism, and consumer preferences <LI> Innovative uses of agricultural and forest products for the international marketplace, including bio-products and uses for agricultural byproducts<LI> New food safety and processing technologies to enhance the competitiveness of PNW agricultural products in global markets.
Non-Technical Summary: Washington state is the second most trade dependent on agricultural products. As global markets expand, the profitability of Washington producers depends upon their ability to improve their competitiveness in world markets. IMPACT's goal is to utilize university expertise to this end. The competitiveness and increased exports of Washington's agricultural products as well as scholarly publications and grants received by IMPACT scientists would be a good metric. Research results are published in scholarly journals, presented to industry, and recommendations to improve competitiveness are made. These results inform producers, industry, and policymakers of improvements in technology, potential markets and export opportunities. <P> Approach: IMPACT projects are typically multidisciplinary in nature and require the expertise of researchers from several disciplines. As such, the procedures will vary, but it is the goal of IMPACT that all research be of publishable quality and hence the best practices and standards of the disciplines involved guide the procedures.