Is the share of agricultural maintenance research rising in the United States?

► Maintenance research is measured to assess how much is performed and why. ► Forty percent of US agricultural research is now devoted to maintenance. ► Ignoring maintenance research can lead to underestimating research benefits. ► The need for maintenance research is likely to grow as climate change accelerates. ► Percent maintenance research declines as state-provided research funding declines. Public research is a major contributor to agricultural productivity growth, but if research investments are not maintained, agricultural productivity can decline over time. Maintenance research replaces deteriorated research knowledge to forestall a productivity decline. Knowledge of the magnitude of maintenance research can facilitate a more complete assessment of the value of agricultural research programs. Trends in maintenance research and sources of change in those trends are investigated. Results indicate that overall, about 40% of US agricultural research is devoted to maintenance, up from about a third 25years ago. A model is developed and estimated to explain maintenance research expenditures. Research funding, climatic conditions, insect and pathogen control, and agricultural production choices influence maintenance research expenditures. Increased reliance on out-of-state funding sources may skew agricultural research away from maintenance research, while climate change may increase the need for such research.