Technological advances in agricultural science, improving farm business management and ensuring effective knowledge transfer will make it possible to feed nine billion mouths by 2030 concluded the 2011 NIAB TAG North-East Outlook Conference ‘Enough On Our Plates’.
NIAB is part of a consortium of UK research groups which has secured a £7m research grant to increase the diversity of traits available in wheat through a major new public sector pre-breeding programme.
President José Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission, toured NIAB as part of a visit to Cambridge to see how European funding is helping to strengthen the city’s reputation for world-leading innovation, particularly in plant and environmental research and technologies. President Barroso saw how the InCrops project is helping entrepreneurs exploit the versatility of crops to make environmentally-friendly products and reduce natural waste.
Two leading UK institutes have joined forces with food retailer Waitrose to establish a new centre, aimed at helping the UK farming and food sector to meet increasing challenges in food production and sustainability.
Called the Centre of Excellence for UK Farming, or CEUKF, the new centre will provide a network of expertise to help ensure that the best information and advice on developments in science, innovation and practical know-how are accessible to provide real benefits across the supply chain.
The Chair of an influential agricultural parliamentary group has highlighted the enormous potential of East Anglia’s agricultural research and life sciences sectors on a visit to the National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB) in Cambridge.
George Freeman, Conservative MP for Mid-Norfolk and Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Science and Technology in Agriculture, visited NIAB as part of his drive to unlock the east of England’s significant strengths in agricultural research and food science.
The 2011 NIAB TAG Outlook Conference will focus on the impact of the global food security challenge on UK farm businesses and the need for continued investment in agricultural science.
THURSDAY 1 FEBRUARY 2011, 9.30-3.00PM
Closing the yield gap: free workshop on innovation and technology for arable farmers
Arable farmers are invited to a free Farming Futures workshop on 1st February to explore what the latest innovation, science and technology could mean for your farm. The workshop will look to unpick the latest developments in plant science and consider its role for helping farmers feed a growing population in a climate changed world.
NIAB chief executive Dr Tina Barsby has welcomed the central conclusion in the Global Food and Farming Futures Foresight report that Governments around the world must increase investment in agricultural research and development to meet the food demands of a growing world population.
Dr Barsby called on the UK Government to lead the way in targeting funding for research to improve yields, disease-resistance and climate resilience of key crops, and to support the sustainable intensification of agriculture using the most advances technologies and practices.
Richard Macdonald and Andrew Kuyk have been appointed as members of the NIAB Board.
Former NFU Director General Richard Macdonald currently chairs Defra’s Better Regulation Task Force. Andrew Kuyk is the Food and Drink Federation’s Director of Sustainability and Competitiveness. He was previously a senior official at Defra.
NIAB Board Chairman Tony Pexton said:
