London, United Kingdom
July 21, 2009
The
National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB) has
welcomed calls from a cross-party group of MPs for the UK to
invest an extra £100m in public sector agricultural research.
The demand for additional research funding is one of the main
recommendations of a food security report issued today by the
House of Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee.
The report focuses on the challenges for the UK of meeting a
required doubling of global food production by 2050, while at
the same time coping with climate change and new pest and
disease pressures.
It calls on the Government to produce a long-term vision and
strategy for the UK food and farming sectors, with a long-term
goal of encouraging farming systems which increase production
while protecting vital soil and water resources and reducing
greenhouse gas emissions.
In particular, MPs highlight the important role of agricultural
science and technology in allowing food production to keep pace
with population growth, and the need to increase investment in
public sector research. The lack of applied research services to
translate the results of basic science into on-farm practice is
identified as a serious cause for concern.
Welcoming the report, NIAB chief executive Dr Tina Barsby said:
“Crop improvement through plant breeding and related agronomic
improvements will be the major contributor to increased food
production for the indefinite future, yet the UK has
progressively cut public sector investment in applied
agricultural research and knowledge transfer to a precariously
low level.
“There is now a gap in the research pipeline. While our research
institutes and universities remain world-leaders in basic plant
science, much of that work is taking place without being
transferred to potentially useful crops.
“Working in partnership with these organisations, NIAB has the
scientific skills and agricultural expertise to translate
advances in basic plant science into genetic backgrounds and
material which will be of use to commercial plant breeders. We
therefore welcome the EFRA Committee’s call for greater
long-term, strategic investment in applied research and
knowledge transfer, especially translational work of the kind
taking place at NIAB to transform basic plant science into
innovative products of value to farmers and consumers.” |
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