New USDA location in Indianapolis to enrich Purdue agricultural analysis, applications

The Indianapolis cityscape. (Purdue University photograph/Greta Bell)

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has selected Indianapolis as one among 5 hub places to relocate the company’s employees and different assets from the Washington, D.C., space. The hubs have been chosen based mostly on their proximity to the agricultural group and extra reasonably priced price of residing for USDA workers, saving taxpayer {dollars}.

The transfer to Indianapolis places USDA assets nearer to Purdue University’s widely known agricultural analysis, instructional and group outreach applications. Since launching its growth in Indiana’s capital metropolis final 12 months, Purdue continues to extend its presence in Indianapolis, positioning the college as a catalyst for innovation and financial growth.

“The outstanding strength of Purdue’s agriculture ecosystem, including the students, faculty, staff, alumni, neighbors and partners, along with Purdue’s strategic initiatives in Indianapolis and in One Health, present an attractive case for USDA’s new hub in Indianapolis,” stated Purdue President Mung Chiang. “We are excited about this transformative opportunity for long lasting impact in our state.” 

For 5 consecutive years, the college’s agricultural and organic engineering graduate program has held a No. 1 spot in U.S. News and World Report’s finest graduate faculty rankings. In 2025 QS World University Rankings acknowledged Purdue’s College of Agriculture because the No. 3 college of agriculture in North America and No. 6 in the world.

“A USDA hub in Indianapolis has many potential implications for Purdue, including job and internship opportunities for students and alumni and research collaboration on cutting-edge agricultural issues with wide-ranging impact,” stated Bernie Engel, the Glenn W. Sample Dean of Purdue’s College of Agriculture.

The World Food Prize has additionally been awarded to 2 professors and one alumnus from Purdue’s College of Agriculture throughout the previous 20 years.

“We are proud to welcome USDA employees to our state and look forward to working more closely with them and Purdue as well as our other stakeholders to better serve our agriculture industry,” stated Indiana Gov. Mike Braun.

Karen Plaut, Purdue’s former government vp for analysis, performed an instrumental position in advocating for Indianapolis to develop into the location of a USDA hub. Plaut additionally was dean of Purdue’s College of Agriculture from 2018-23.

The different 4 USDA hubs can be in Raleigh, North Carolina; Kansas City, Missouri; Fort Collins, Colorado; and Salt Lake City, Utah. The USDA plans to retain roughly 2,000 workers in Washington.

About Purdue University

Purdue University is a public analysis college main with excellence at scale. Ranked amongst high 10 public universities within the United States, Purdue discovers, disseminates and deploys data with a high quality and at a scale second to none. More than 107,000 college students research at Purdue throughout a number of campuses, places and modalities, together with greater than 58,000 at our important campus in West Lafayette and Indianapolis. Committed to affordability and accessibility, Purdue’s important campus has frozen tuition 14 years in a row. See how Purdue by no means stops within the persistent pursuit of the following large leap — together with its complete city growth, the Mitch Daniels School of Business, Purdue Computes and the One Health initiative — at