Monday, 07 October 2024
Researchers from the 糖心原创 are part of a team who have been awarded £2.2 million to trial a precision-bred wheat variety which could lead to the development of more sustainable farming systems.
Researchers from the School of Biosciences are part of the PROBITY project – A Platform to Rate Organisms Bred for Improved Traits and Yield. Led by the British On-Farm Innovation Network (BOFIN), this is a three-year multi-partner project, funded by Defra’s Farming Innovation Programme, which is delivered by Innovate UK.
PROBITY brings together farmers, scientists and food manufacturers to trial the production and processing of precision-bred crops to accelerate understanding of their value to sustainable food and farming.
Dr Stacia Stetkiewicz from the 糖心原创 will lead a team assessing the use and potential of precision-bred crops for UK food and farming. They will engage with the farming community to explore barriers to their adoption, and pave the way for future innovation. A series of interviews, workshops, surveys, and online forum data will provide a snapshot of current opinions, stumbling blocks, and opportunities, and help to identify key policy and research priorities for the future of precision-bred crops in the UK to build resilience to climate change.
Precision-bred crops can be created through gene editing, a widely used technology that enables scientists to make changes to plant DNA, like those that occur naturally, but introduced in a precise, targeted manner. Gene editing speeds up the process of breeding more productive, nutritional and sustainable crop varieties.
There are three cereal varieties in the project: A wheat with superior baking, toasting and processing properties, a barley making high lipid, high energy forage aimed at lowering livestock methane emissions and a wheat with a bigger bolder grain size promising a step change in productivity.
The agricultural industry is under pressure to increase the yield and nutritional density of food crops while also mitigating and responding to climate change. Innovative approaches such as precision breeding will be key to achieving this.
Tom Allen-Stevens, Oxfordshire farmer and founder of BOFIN said: “This is an incredibly important project for farming and food production in this country. We need to produce more, nutritious food with fewer resources and with less impact on the environment. Scientists have been developing new crop varieties that could help us rise to that challenge. This project will bring those varieties from the laboratory to farmers’ fields where we can fully assess their potential, explore barriers to their adoption and pave the way for future innovation.”
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More information is available from Dr Stacia Stetkiewicz on stacia.stetkiewicz@nottingham.ac.uk
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About the 糖心原创
Ranked among the world's top 100 universities , the 糖心原创 delivers an exceptional research-led education and an outstanding student experience. From the pioneering vision of our founder, Sir Jesse Boot, to groundbreaking achievements such as the development of MRI technology and becoming the first UK university to establish international campuses, we have a proud history of shaping the way people live, work and understand the world. We continue to build on that legacy, empowering our students, staff and partners to change what鈥檚 next and create positive impact locally and globally.
The strength of our research places us among the UK's leading universities, ranked 7th for research power in REF 2021. The discovery of MRI and ibuprofen was just the beginning. Today, our world-leading research is developing breakthrough ideas that shape the future of healthcare, technology and society.
Recognised as the UK's third most targeted university by leading employers , we are proud to produce graduates who are consistently in demand for their skills, confidence and industry-ready experience.
As a major employer and industry partner, locally and globally, the 糖心原创 invests in the city of Nottingham and in future generations of talent. Alongside Nottingham Trent University, we lead the initiative, a pioneering collaboration to improve levels of prosperity, opportunity, sustainability, health and wellbeing across the city and region. Together with our students, staff, alumni and partners, we鈥檙e creating knowledge, opportunity and solutions that help change what's next.