Shutdown of Key USDA Laboratories Established in 1910 Sparks Industry Friction

A major wave of administrative restructuring has created friction across the broader agricultural research and pollinator health sectors.

• The Decommissioning of BARC: The administration moved forward with plans to decommission and shutter the historic Beltsville Agricultural Research Center (BARC) in Beltsville, Maryland. 

• Impact on the Veterinary and Bee Ecosystems: Among the facilities being shut down is the renowned Bee Research Laboratory (Bee Lab). Advocacy networks like Beyond Pesticides issued a public call-to-action warning that closing this lab halts essential studies on honeybee colony collapses, parasite resistance, and long-term pollinator population survival. This shutdown goes directly against previous directives within the Agriculture Appropriations Act, drawing heavy pushback from farming and veterinary groups.

Among the facilities closing down is the Bee Research Laboratory (aka Bee Lab), which conducts research that has been essential in raising issues critical to the health of honey bee colonies, responding to crises, and helping beekeepers maintain an adequate healthy supply of bees for the pollination of crops. The Bee Lab is not the only federal pollinator program to face funding cuts or dismantling. Also facing threats to funding are the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Ecosystems Mission Area, which includes the USGS Bee Lab, other USGS research centers, and U.S. Forest Service research stations. A U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) report, USDA’s Decision to Relocate Research Agencies to Kansas City Was Not Fully Consistent with an Evidence-Based Approach, on previous relocations during the first Trump adinistration disputed most of the justifications used by USDA to save taxpayer money and improve contact in the field with stakeholders.

This pollinator research is important, but losses to science, agriculture, and health from the closure of BARC go much further.