“
The AHDB is keen that more farmers reap the benefi ts of innovation
Collaboration
Increased collaboration is also re- quired to harness industry knowl- edge through public and private sector partnerships, it says. As a result, AHDB has pledged £900,000 in support to agricul- tural PhD courses in 2018, with
funds totalling in excess of £5m over the next fi ve years. AHDB chief technical offi cer
Richard Laverick said: “This in- vestment will help universities forge stronger links with the UK’s fast-evolving agricultural indus- try by delivering practical techni-
This investment will help universities forge stronger links with the agricultural industry
cal developments which are rele- vant to industry priorities. “It further provides a unique and cost-effective opportunity to build expertise and understand- ing of novel technical practic- es, supporting growers, produc- ers and others in the UK supply chain.”
Countries with more integrat- ed and coordinated knowledge exchange frameworks stood a better chance of growing produc- tivity, said Mr Laverick. Working with industry, research organisa- tions, charities and other funders towards the same goal would be the key to the UK’s success.
Investment
Investment in agricultural inno- vation has been bolstered in recent years through the government’s
Agri-Tech strategy. But the AHDB has warned that public funding of agricultural R&D remains heav- ily skewed towards ‘blue sky’ re- search, rather than near-market application. Having invested approximate- ly £4m in PhD programmes over the last fi ve years – supporting 80 studentships annually – AHDB says it remains the only public UK organisation committed to funding studentships with prac- tical, direct and specifi c industry relevance.
The announcement of the £5m fund has been welcomed by aca- demic institutes and research cen- tres with expertise in applied ag- ricultural science. AHDB PhD studentships provided sound scientifi c training linked to real world problems, they said. Jim Monaghan, director of the
Fresh Produce Research Centre at Harper Adams University, said: “We really need to attract more skilled young people into technical careers in agriculture to address the coming challenges of feeding the UK in a changing world.”
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MARCH 2018 • ANGLIA FARMER 63
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