The Scottish Rural College (SRUC) has joined the Centre of Excellence for UK Farming (CEUKF) alongside Aberystwyth University’s Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS); Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute of Northern Ireland (AFBI); Harper Adams University, and The National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB).
Since it launch in 2011, with seed-funding from Waitrose, CEUKF has played an important role in identifying and then promoting best practice for UK farmers through innovation in knowledge transfer in the fields of technology, production systems and on-farm management.
The research already being undertaken at SRUC will supplement the work of CEUKF and opportunities for collaborative research between the college and existing partners may be available in the near future. SRUC principal and chief executive Professor Bob Webb believes the new partnership is a positive step for UK agriculture. He said: “To deliver a world class agricultural industry requires a pipeline of basic and strategic research that feeds through to inform both the training of our students and our advisory services. Importantly, partners within CEUKF have this breadth of integrated expertise and provision.”
Lord Curry of Kirkharle, chairman of CEUKF's steering board agrees. He said: “The research projects and industrial interactions initiated by this alliance are making a real difference to agriculture in the UK, bringing new knowledge into agri-food supply chains and enabling a fresh approach to knowledge exchange.”
In the future, the centre wishes to create more partnerships between farming and research organisations in order to bring about a more sustainable and efficient platform for UK agriculture.
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