News article

Available to all - access the online flip-book and downloadable PDF versions of Issue 55 – Spring 2024.

NIAB Landmark: Spring 2024

In this issue:

The annual in-house award, initiated by former NIAB Trustee Bentley Nelstrop, celebrates exceptional contribution to innovation and enterprise by an individual or a team from within NIAB.

Tricia’s contributions have been central to NIAB’s ability to remain an integral part of the statutory and Recommended List trials systems for sugar beet, maize, pulse, herbage and a whole host of minor crops whose popularity has ebbed and flowed over the past 50+ years.

Belinda is NIAB's Head of Research and Oenology, working at the Wine Innovation Centre at East Malling in Kent. Here she provides scientific leadership in viticulture and oenology research and development of the Wine Innovation Centre.

In this short video, part of NIAB's Meet the scientist series, Belinda discusses her love of wine, why all aspects of viticulture fascinate her and gives her top tips for anyone looking to get in to viticulture and oenlogy.

What are (and could be if crop area expands/ as a result of climate change) the main pest, disease and weed challenges for the most likely UK paludiculture crops (reed, typha, sphagnum, ….)?

Are there food/feed crops that should be prioritised for agronomy/breeding development for paludiculture systems in the UK?

If you have any quick thoughts on these questions, then please get in touch via colin.peters [at] niab.com

Available to all - access the online flip-book and downloadable PDF versions of Issue 54 - Winter 2023/24.

The event is split into three sessions, the first leading with a presentation by NIAB’s Growing Kent & Medway team on how the programme is supporting sustainable innovation in the sector. New developments in post-harvest research at The University of Greenwich will include a talk on a Growing Kent & Medway funded project on improving energy use in apple stores. There will also be presentations on the new apple rootstock M200 and research to speed up the process of apple breeding.

Julia is a Plant Molecular Biologist working in NIAB's Crop Transformation department - a team that uses precision breeding techniques to help produce crops that are more resistant to drought, pests and diseases.

This survey is part of the Centre for High Carbon Capture Cropping (CHCx3) project, a four-year, multi-partner project, spanning agriculture, industry, and academia, and led by NIAB. The survey is aimed specifically at farmers/growers, or their agronomists/advisors. It is seeking to better understand the key requirements of growers when determining which crops to grow on their land or as part of their rotations.

The Future of Vegetable Production on Lowland Peat exposes the risks of continuing to drain the UK’s limited areas of lowland peat for intensive cultivation, which releases huge quantities of carbon dioxide to the atmosphere while depleting soils and landscapes that are essential to UK food security.

The report is an independent study by the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) and NIAB, commissioned through the WWF and Tesco partnership.

FULL OFC PRESS RELEASE

The Oxford Farming Conference (OFC), the UK’s leading agricultural, business and food event, has announced three new Directors will join their board.

NIAB CEO Professor Mario Caccamo, farm estate manager David Hill, and food and drink consultant and coordinator Sheena Horner, will commence their three-year term from January 2024.