Anticipated future trends
All aspects of agriculture have been and will continue to be impacted by rapid social change, economics, technology, biotechnology and politics.
Agriculture is in the top five leading industries in Michigan and will remain high. Niche farming, new crops, community-based farms, urban farming, and farmers' markets are becoming popular with today's consumer of locally grown, organically grown, and uncommon varieties of produce. However, the number of family farms is slowly declining, being taken over by corporate farming operations and the conversion to more monocultures and need for pesticides, fertilizers, and genetically modified crops.
Computer technology skills are a necessity, for keeping financial records, to researching new farming methods, using remote sensing equipment, GPS and GIS technologies, smartphones, data collection by drones, etc. Thus today's agriculturalists and foresters need a well-rounded education that includes not only understanding the cultural requirements of plants and animals and their interactions, but also personnel and business management and technology training.
Various uses of biotechnology, sustainable farming practices, organic culture, and drought-resistant crops are all areas of research being studied to identify better ways to respect the earth, grow food and forestry products, and feed the growing world populations.
The growth of data-intensive research is exponential. Grant-funded research demand data management plan specifications, including considerations for publishing and sharing data. Relevant granting agencies such as the USDA, the US Forest Service, and the National Science Foundation include these data management requirements. This will increase the need for awareness of data publication metadata, requirements, and repositories..
In support of these growing trends, the MSU Libraries should consider purchasing a majority of materials in electronic or ebook formats. This supports the research needs of faculty, researchers, Extension educators, and students working remotely at Experiment and Extension stations around the state. Currently, these disciplines are very well supported by multiple electronic packages such as SpringerLink, ScienceDirect, Wiley Online, multiple CABI products, and many specialty databases, but subscription and open access. The library also subscribes to multiple ebook packages, such as APS, ACSESS, Annual Plant Reviews, just to name a few.
To keep abreast of trends, we should look to additional resources of applicable datasets, existing dataset repositories and their content. For guidelines, please see MSU's Digital Research Data Collection Development Policy.
Another trend that will impact this policy is climate change, and how it is afflicting the natural world including cropping species, methods, and plant and disease management. New resources developed to address these impacts may require new subscriptions and purchases.
Relationships with other resources
1. On campus branch or format collections, if any
Business Library: Farm management, agribusiness, international trade, market reports
Special Collections: Historic American agricultural works and Historic American forestry works
Turfgrass Information Center: Lawn and home landscape works
2. Regional or network resources, if any
Other strong collections in the region are at Ohio State University, Penn State, Purdue University, University of Michigan, University of Minnesota, University of Wisconsin and University of Illinois. The MSU Libraries borrow very little in the agricultural subjects (relative to other areas in the applied sciences) and much of what is borrowed comes from the National Agricultural Library and other land-grant established universities. The State Library of Michigan holds a large collection of state-based forestry and agricultural documents.
In 1990, the MSU Libraries became a charter institutional member of the United States Agricultural Information Network (USAIN).
In 2012, the MSU Libraries became and institutional member of the Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries (CBHL).
3. Relationships to Other Resources Treated in Other Policy Statements
Animal Science: applied areas of plant science related to food animal agriculture, pastures and forages, beekeeping
Biological Science/Natural History: applied areas of plant science related to natural plant communities
Botany: applied areas of plant science related to natural plant communities
Engineering: agricultural and biosystems engineering, construction engineering
Environmental Studies: natural resources management, sustainable programs, pesticide use and pollution
Digital Research Data
Food Science and Human Nutrition: crop production and nutritional value, post-harvest processing
Geology: soil sciences
Turfgrass Information Center: applied areas of plant science related to lawns, home landscaping and turf
Veterinary Medicine: applied areas of plant science related to food animal agriculture
U.S. Government Documents: USDA,US Forest Service and the Department of Interior