In some cases, it may be more advantageous for a company to enter a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ARS. MOU's are broad agreements that require a mutual interest in objectives by both parties. These agreements do not require mutual contributions of personal or financial resources by either party. An MOU is essentially an agreement to coordinate activities and to outline mutually acceptable goals and procedures, leading to mutual decisions. Transfer of resources (money, people etc.) is NOT done with an MOU.

There are five types of MOUs that can be exercised in ARS to fit a specific need.

• A Master MOU is an agreement between ARS and another party or parties covering a broad area of cooperative work. A Master MOU may be entered into with any responsible party. It is used to set forth general principles of coordination, describe mutual needs in broad language, identify resource contributions and state responsibilities.
• A Supplement to the Master MOU is an agreement among the parties to the Master MOU describing in detail a particular program or project. The program or project must be within the scope of the Master MOU.
• An Individual MOU is an agreement between ARS and another party or parties describing a cooperative program or project. It can be used with an individual, public or private organization, Federal Agency, or other single or multiple parties. It is typically used when there is not a Master MOU to supplement.
• A Standard MOU is an agreement between ARS and another party similar to an Individual MOU, but different in that the agreement is reduced to an approved format with blanks to be filled.
• A Cooperative Research and Development MOU is an agreement between ARS and another party to conduct cooperative technology transfer activities pursuant to 15 U.S.C. 3710A.

To find out what type of MOU will fit your situation, contact the Technology Transfer Coordinator responsible for the ARS laboratory location of your interest.