Our work
NIAB employs about 150 people, mainly at the Cambridge HQ site but also at seven Regional Centres. Dr Tina Barsby is Chief Executive of NIAB, and Finance Director, Mrs Susan Arnold support the executive functions.
Operationally, NIAB scientists, students and technical staff are organised by income streams into two groups, Plant Services and Research. A Business Services team provides finance, HR, IT and facilities support to the business.
The core business of Plant Services provides independent, science-led services. NIAB offers integrated services from plant growth and data collection through to analysis and interpretation across a very wide range of crop and plant species. The business is delivered by five teams:
Agricultural and Food Crops provide technical support for systems of seed certification and plant variety registration.- Ornamentals deliver contracts associated with plant breeders rights for DEFRA and CPVO.
- Analytical Services deliver lab services including seed testing, genotyping, disease diagnostics and biochemical analysis.
- Crops and Traits carry out variety evaluation including plant pathology based activities. For example the UK cereal pathogen virulence survey provides vital information on the evolving situation with UK cereal diseases. The team delivers the NIAB Association.
- Farm and Glass Services provide plant growing capability.
NIAB’s expertise is respected and valued both for the knowledge it has accumulated over the years and for the innovation it brings to new challenges. Major customers include DEFRA, plant breeders, various levy bodies as well as governmental agencies, researchers, agribusiness, industry funded non-governmental organisations, plant breeders, commercial companies, consultants and farmers.
Research is committed to connecting research excellence in crop science to targets that have relevance to its various stakeholders.
NIAB’s research programme underpins its core business, creates new opportunities and addresses its charitable objectives. Research is focused in four key areas; namely genetics and breeding, diversity genomics, disease resistance and novel and non-food crops.
Research secures funding from a range of organizations, including the NIAB Trust, BBSRC, DfID, DEFRA LINK, The Food Standards Agency and the European Commission Importantly, aspects of the research has implications for the UK and other parts of the developed world, and for developing countries.