Press release

For all visitors to NIAB at Cereals the winter wheat variety demonstration plots are the main highlight. This year there are 32 varieties either already established on the AHDB Recommended List or candidates, with differences in disease susceptibility between the varieties clearly evident on the untreated plots. NIAB’s variety specialists are available to talk and advise on, not only winter wheat, but variety choice options in all cereals, oilseeds and break crops.

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NIAB FRUIT 2024 ANNUAL REVIEW

Published in print and digital format, visitors can take copies from any NIAB stand at fruit and horticultural trade shows across this year, including the Fruit Focus event at East Malling on 10th July, as well as being available at NIAB offices in East Malling and Cambridge. View or download a digital copy at niab.com.

Free and available to all, the online Guide, hosted by the crop research organisation NIAB, contains a vast volume of best practice information on commercial apple production.

The Precision Orchard Management for the Environment (POME) project is a four-year, £4.5 million project that will see cutting-edge technologies used to analyse fruit trees in fine detail, allowing inputs to be targeted in a way that has never been seen before in UK orchards.

The project will focus on seven plant species of high relevance to UK researchers: arabidopsis, barley, oat, oilseed rape, rice, tomato and wheat. The aim is to integrate, analyse and add value to existing plant population DNA sequence data in a user-friendly, browsable genomic context, ultimately opening up opportunities in crop research innovation.

With a career spanning over 30 years in food and agritech innovation, Ms Malarkey has held senior research and development roles in multinational businesses in the UK, Switzerland, The Netherlands and the USA. These include Chief Innovation Officer at Royal DSM, Head of Global Research and Development at Syngenta and various non-executive director and scientific advisory roles in established global companies and start-ups.

In presenting the awards at this year’s BCPC Congress event in Harrogate, BCPC Advisory Board Member Jim Orson said: “Both recipients, in different organisations, are at the very centre of training and support for Integrated Pest Management withinthe sector, carefully and brilliantly ensuring that farmers receive informed advice on managing their crops. Not only do they do that, but they also give of their time to support other industry initiatives.”

Established in 2021 in India, eFeed uses farm-level bioinformatics for precision cattle management to improve yield of the animal and reduce GHG (methane) emissions. By utilising farm-level cattle health and feeding/nutrition data to predict potential diseases, eFeed recommends precise feeding and estimates milking during the lactation cycle.

At the same time, it enables farmers to account and offset their methane emissions. All this information exchange is carried out digitally with farmers using a mobile app.

The collaboration includes the launch of the semi-exclusive ‘Malling Bella® and Malling Charm® Club MX’, with a select few of Mexico’s largest raspberry producers licensed to grow the proprietary Club varieties.

NIAB has appointed VIVEX as the Club’s exclusive agent and plant propagator. VIVEX will be responsible for the coordination of the propagation, technical support, auditing, and royalty collection.

This prestigious event in agriculture’s calendar addresses the regulatory aspects of crop production and has a history running back 70 years. This year’s Congress focuses on shaping the future of crop protection.