Arthur Berkey Agriculture, Food, & Natural Resources Science Fair
Wednesday, March 4, 2026
MSU Wharton Center
750 E Shaw Lane
East Lansing, MI 48824
Project Submissions Due: Friday, January 23, 2026
The Arthur Berkey Agriculture, Food, & Natural Resources Science Fair recognizes middle and high school students who are studying the application of scientific principles and emerging technologies in agriculture and natural resources. Participation begins at the local chapter/club level, progresses to the state level, and for FFA members the national level. Areas of participation closely mirror those of the International Science and Engineering Fair but reflect an agriculture and natural resources theme.
The Arthur Berkey Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources Science Fair is broke into two rounds.
1. Preliminary Round, Research Papers are due for submission on January 23, 2026.
2. Arthur Berkey Science Fair, Presentation and Q&A with judges at the Arthur Berkey Science Fair on March 4, 2026.
Project Categories include:
- Animal Systems
- Environmental Services/Natural Resource Systems
- Food Products and Processing Systems
- Plant Systems
- Power, Structural and Technical Systems
- Social Science
Categories are separated into the six divisions below.
- Division 1 – individual member in grades 7 and 8
- Division 2 – team of two members in grades 7 and 8
- Division 3 – individual member in grades 9 and 10
- Division 4 – team of two members in grades 9 and 10
- Division 5 – individual member in grades 11 and 12
- Division 6 – team of two members in grades 11 and 12
Eligibility Rules
Competition is open to all in grades 7-12.
Submission Requirements
In order to participate in the science fair, the online registration must be completed in full. Only one registration is necessary for partner projects. Both partners do not need to register.
There will be a required file upload for the full research paper. Files must be submitted as PDFs. Please include the name of the student(s), the category, and division in the paper's file name. This expedites the scoring process.
It will be followed by a text area field that needs to include only the abstract portion of the paper. Abstracts are provided to the science fair judges prior to the day of the event to give them a preview of the projects they will be scoring.
Earlybird Project Submission for Arthur Berkey Science Fair starts October 6, 2025
Normal Project Submission starts October 6, 2025
The last day for Project Submission is 11:59 p.m. ET on January 23, 2026
Earlybird Judge Registration for Arthur Berkey Science Fair starts December 1, 2025
Normal Judge Registration starts December 1, 2025
The last day for Judge Registration is 11:59 p.m. ET on March 4, 2026
Accommodations
Michigan State University Extension programs, services events, and materials are open to all without regard to race, color, national origin, gender, gender identity, religion, age, height, weight, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, marital status, family status, or veteran status. Accommodations for persons with disabilities may be requested by contacting the event contact two weeks prior to the start of the event. Requests received after this date will be honored whenever possible.
Contact Information
For more information or help with the registration process, please contact Shelby Warner at 517-884-7076, or warner80@msu.edu.