Jeremy Lewis, former head of agriculture at accountants Grant Thornton, has been elected new Chairman of the NIAB Board. He succeeds Tony Pexton, who has chaired the NIAB Board for the past eight years and stands down after 11 years on the Board.
Richard MacDonald, former NFU Director-General and chair of Defra’s Better Regulation Task Force, has been elected Vice-Chairman of the NIAB Board.
The Advanced Training Partnership for Sustainable and Efficient Food Production (ATP Pasture) launched its flexible training programme at Livestock 2012 on the 4th September. The partnership is funded by BBSRC and consists of three institutions: the Institute of Biological, Environmental and Rural Sciences (IBERS), Bangor University and the National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB).
Livestock and dairy farmers will have access to locally-relevant forage crop variety and agronomy information with the establishment of a new UK technical crop service.
Thirteen new first choice varieties have been added to the 2013 Forage Maize Descriptive List (DL) launched by BSPB and NIAB at the Livestock 2012 Event.
Work has begun on a new £1.4 million building on the outskirts of Cambridge dedicated to showcasing the benefits of plant genetic innovation in agriculture and industry.
NIAB TAG has appointed Gareth Burns as its Forage Crops Specialist.
Dr Burns will provide specialist technical and research expertise on herbage and maize crops and will also lead the development of NIAB TAG’s new Forage Crop Centre. Based near Dartington in Devon, the Centre provides a focal point for the expansion of the organisation’s research and information services in grass, clover and forage maize.
Increased cereal yields for UK farmers and lower greenhouse gas emissions are the key objectives of a ground breaking new £644,000 research project commissioned by the HGCA and carried out by the James Hutton Institute and NIAB TAG.
NIAB is a pioneering plant science organisation based at the heart of the Cambridge science, technology and university communities and a thriving UK agricultural industry.
With over 90 years experience in the agricultural and food sectors, NIAB has an internationally recognised reputation for independence, innovation and integrity. Our traditional activities have always focused on science-led plant variety and seeds characterisation, evaluation, quality control and knowledge transfer
JOINT PRESS RELEASE from abc, NFU, NIAB, Rothamsted Research, The Sainsbury Laboratory
Does the UK need a strategic plan for growth in the agricultural technology sector in order to address global food security, sustainably, and to keep pace with growing competition from emerging markets?
Cases of Septoria disease with unusually short latent periods and the ability to go through the infection cycle quicker than normal, have been found in winter wheat in East Anglia, says NIAB TAG.
“I’ve now seen several cases of Septoria tritici on Leaf 2 where the winter wheat crop was only just at GS39. This shouldn’t be ‘biologically’ possible because Leaf 2 hasn’t been out long enough to become infected, go though a normal latent period, and then show symptoms,” explains Bill Clark, NIAB TAG’s Commercial Director.
