Chief Scientific Adviser backs Teagasc to lead agri industry

The latest edition of TResearch, Teagasc’s scientific research magazine, carries an extensive interview with Professor Patrick Cunningham, the Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government. He gives his views on the educational needs for the agriculture and food sectors, the future role of Teagasc, biofuels and GM crops.

Speaking to Catriona Boyle, the Editor of TResearch, Professor Cunningham said: “The knowledge economy applies in agriculture as it does in everything else. It is an increasingly sophisticated and competitive market for the products of agriculture. We have to have a centre of expertise to lead the industry and Teagasc is it. Teagasc is the main national investment in this area and it has a good track record of delivery and it’s now in the process of adapting itself.”

Professor Cunningham supports the National Development Plan’s objective to double the number of PhD students. He said: “The only way to stay ahead of the game is to grow in sophistication, which requires an investment in knowledge and the people who carry the knowledge. While I think our education system is very good, we have been deficient in the fourth level, that is, the research and development level. We need to take people on from a basic degree into deeper knowledge, more professional competence, and in greater numbers.”

There has been a renewed interest in biofuels with rising oil prices and scarcity of oil. Professor Cunningham believes we could double our tillage acreage to grow crops for energy without hurting the volume of grass produced. He said: “You can never drive down the production cost of a crop to the level of a product that is simply pumped out of the ground. As long as oil is in plentiful supply it will always be able to undercut a crop-derived road fuel, so, we’re depending on oil becoming scarce and dear. Then the value of road fuel that is grown in a field of rapeseed meets a rising market. With oil available at $60 a barrel, it’s getting close to feasible.”

On the issue of GM crops, Professor Cunningham said: “There is a prospect now of blight-resistant potato and there are other things coming down the line that are quite exciting. The technology is 10 years old and over 100 million hectares of GM crops are grown worldwide. The EU has funded over 80 projects on aspects of GM safety and concluded that the safety record is excellent. For many people the question of its impact on human health is not an issue anymore, though opinion surveys continue to show very high levels of public concern. As long as public concern persists across Europe there could be market advantages in being GM free.”

For further information contact Catriona Boyle at 059 918 3419, or at catriona.boyle@teagasc.ie

Copies of TResearch are available on request, or visit www.teagasc.ie to download a copy.