News
Farmland birds in Scotland decline over past decade, report shows
A new report on Scotland’s breeding birds shows that all farmland species have decreased over the past ten years.
The NatureScot report highlights that while woodland and pastoral bird numbers remain higher than 1994 levels, arable and wet farmland bird populations are now lower than a decade ago.
Source: STV News
AbacusBio Deepen Strategic Partnership with Bayer to Pioneer the Future of Predictive Plant Breeding
AbacusBio is proud to announce the extension of their multi-year collaboration with Bayer to 2030, marking a significant leap forward in predictive plant breeding and agricultural innovation. Building on the momentum of their successful partnership, which began in 2020, the two companies are expanding and evolving their joint efforts to deliver transformative solutions for growers, markets, and consumers worldwide.
Biotech firm raises £4.5M for North American expansion
Rhizocore Technologies, a biotechnology company which uses fungi to improve tree growth and survival rates, has secured £4.5 million in investment to scale its innovative approach to forestry and woodland restoration. This investment comes after surging demand for Rhizocore’s fungal tree health pellets.
Virtual dairy farm aims to transform industry
Researchers in the south of Scotland have unveiled virtual farm technology they hope could help transform the dairy industry.
Farm-twin is free to download code which allows the creation of a model of an entire farm system - from individual animals to infrastructure - using real-time data sensors.
Source: BBC News
New boss lined up for UK's farming and aquaculture innovation centre
Farming and aquaculture innovation body the UK Agri-Tech Centre has announced that Marks and Spencer’s head of agriculture and fisheries sourcing, Steve McLean, is to become its new chief executive.
UK Agri-Tech works alongside food producers, SMEs, industry, government and world-class research institutions to accelerate impactful agri-tech innovation, including innovation in aquaculture.
Falling demand signals shift in Scotland’s rural land market
Scotland’s rural land market is showing signs of cooling, with falling demand in key sectors such as commercial forestry and natural capital investment.
New analysis from the Scottish Land Commission and Scotland's Rural College (SRUC) reveals how economic and political uncertainty have reshaped rural land market activity over the past year.
Source: Business Insider
Artificial intelligence supports pig welfare
A combination of tracking technology and social mapping that reveals how pigs build relationships over time could inform welfare strategies. Artificial intelligence (AI) has been combined with techniques to map animals’ interactions, to gain insights into pigs’ social relationships. Scientists at the Roslin Institute, in collaboration with industrial partners PIC and an international research team, examined how pigs associated with one another over time by using technology to analyse their proximity during social interactions.
Farmers call for gene editing to be allowed in Scotland's crops
Farmers have called for gene editing to be allowed for Scotland’s crops as legislation in England moves a step closer.
With an ever changing climate, some are arguing that editing the genes of crops could be a way to mitigate against extreme weather and help bolster food security in a changing climate.
Source: STV
Rhizocore Leads Innovative Project to Tackle Agricultural Pollution with Fungi Bio-Filters
Rhizocore Technologies Ltd has secured a £1 million Defra grant to advance a fungi-based bio-filtration system designed to mitigate agricultural water pollution.
In collaboration with The James Hutton Institute, Harper Adams University, and Cheshire Wildlife Trust, this initiative aims to deliver scalable, nature-based solutions for improving water quality.
New vertical farm a first for Scottish education
SRUC has stepped up its commitment to global and local food production and security by becoming the first higher education institution in Scotland to open a commercial-sized vertical farm.
Jim Fairlie MSP, Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity, officially opened the £1.8 million SRUC Vertical Farming Innovation Centre – which has received £200,000 from the Scottish Government – at the Edinburgh Campus of Scotland’s Rural College.