Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center
The Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center is a $12.4 million, state-of-the-art facility that includes offices, research laboratories, seed storage, and greenhouses.
The mission of the Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center is to conduct research to help keep the U.S. rice industry competitive in the global marketplace by assuring high yields, superior grain quality, pest resistance, and stress tolerance.
The Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center builds upon 70 years of cooperative research between the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the University of Arkansas.
From 1931 to 1993, there were only one or two USDA scientists at Stuttgart, and then growth began. There are now eight USDA scientist positions at the Dale Bumpers National Rice Research Center.
Research groups include genetics, germplasm, evaluation and enhancement, physiology of weed control, cereal chemistry, molecular genetics, cytogenetics, molecular plant pathology, and molecular biology.

UA Rice Research and Extension Center
The University of Arkansas Rice Research and Extension Center (RREC) is one of the best known and oldest rice research centers in the world. Arkansas produces almost half the rice grown in the United States, and the center has played a vital role in the success of the Arkansas rice industry.
RREC is located nine miles east of Stuttgart (Arkansas County) on Highway 130. Originally called the Rice Branch Station, it was authorized by the Arkansas General Assembly in 1923, and work commenced on it in December 1926.
Rice production in Arkansas became established around the early part of the twentieth century. The Grand Prairie, lying between the White and Arkansas rivers in southeast Arkansas, was particularly well suited to rice cultivation. As a native prairie, it was covered primarily by grasses and other herbaceous plants. Fire frequently burned the accumulated vegetation, keeping much of the land free of trees. The soil that supported this landscape had a “hardpan,” a layer of nearly impervious clay-like soil about six inches under the surface. This hardpan prevented water from percolating through the soil, a trait that made it ideal for flooded rice cultivation. This, coupled with ample available water, led to the development of the Arkansas rice industry. Today, Arkansas has about one and a half million acres in rice production.
After the initial farmers’ experiments and successes at growing rice, it was obvious that research was needed on many production issues. The Rice Branch Station, which was renamed the Rice Research and Extension Center in 1981, focused on addressing those issues. The most important research topic was the development of rice varieties adapted to the regional environment. Initially, varietal development was undertaken by a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) scientist posted at the center, Dr. C. Roy Adair. Varieties were developed through conventional hybridization and selection as well as screening newly acquired varieties imported from around the world. Over thirty rice varieties have been developed at the center, including Zenith, Starbonnet, Newbonnet, and Wells. These varieties have been grown not only in Arkansas but also in other rice-producing states (Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Florida, and Texas). Research on other areas of production include soil fertility, irrigation, plant physiology, entomology, plant pathology, and various aspects of crop, soil, and water management.
Six resident faculty and about 46 support employees work at RREC. The complex contains two reservoirs, greenhouses, laboratories, and seed-processing facilities in addition to research fields. A new laboratory facility will be completed by 2009.

Stuttgart National Aquaculture Center
The mission of the Harry K. Dupree Stuttgart National Aquaculture Research Center is to conduct aquaculture research to address the highest priority needs of the U.S. aquaculture industry. The Center’s research program is comprised of in-house research projects in both Stuttgart, Arkansas and Fort Pierce, FL.
The Center's research programs focus primarily in four areas:
1) Freshwater Systems Production Research including development of feeds and improved culture strategies for warmwater fish species, other than catfish, such as hybrid striped bass, baitfish, ornamental fish and carp.
2) Marine Systems Production Research including development of feeds, improved recirculating production systems, and larval culture strategies for sustainable production of marine species such as flounder, sea bass and pompano grown in low-salinity environments.
3) Disease Therapeutics Evaluation and Registration Research for warmwater fish species including catfish, trout, tilapia, baitfish and hybrid striped bass.
4) Bird Depredation Research including development of practical dispersal and barrier technologies for control of fish-eating birds on fish farms.
HISTORY
The Harry K. Dupree Stuttgart National Aquaculture Research Center, was formally the Fish Farming Experimental Laboratory (FFEL)of the National Biological Services, U.S. Department of Interior until transferred to the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1996 as a part of the Farm Bill. The station was established in 1958 in response to the Fish Rice Rotation Act (Public Law 85-342) which directed the Secretary of the Interior to develop a program of research and experimentation to solve problems related to the production and harvest of warmwater fish.