AgResearch's science platforms

Agri-Food Production [$31.37 million per year excl. GST]

An integrated Platform of farm biome genomics, biosecurity and decision-centric farm systems for sustainable livestock production. Eg. Genomics for improving performance whilst reducing emissions to the environment; supporting uptake of new practices and technologies.

This Platform will contribute to 2 impact areas: enhancing the performance of forages and animals (about $19 million); and growing the sustainable productivity/profitability of farm systems within environmental limits (about $7 million).

The research in this Platform will inform the design and adoption of future farm systems, including those of Māori agribusinesses, and identify opportunities to improve farm systems through use of digital and disruptive technologies, on-farm efficiencies and performance gains, protection from pest incursions and building resilient farm systems to adapt to and mitigate the impact of climate change.

Premium Agri-Foods [$12.05 million per year excl GST]

Combining food science, material science, food safety science to create high-value milk, meat and bio-based products. Eg. Food safety systems; innovative meat, wool and dairy products; adding value to current co-products.

This Platform will contribute to 2 impact areas: high-value agri-foods with proven functionality, that are safe (about $8 million); and high value wool-based products with proven functionality, sustainable and ethical credentials (about $2 million).

This Platform will provide technologies and knowhow to add value to our agri-foods and co-products, particularly through differentiation and validated functional benefits to the consumer. It will also help ensure consistency and consumer acceptance of agri-product processing, improving product quality, safety and assurance.

New Zealand’s Bioeconomy in the Digital Age Initiative

A 2 year digital agriculture initiative New Zealand’s Bioeconomy in the Digital Age contributes to both platforms; aiming to harness the power of digital technologies to enable the transformation of New Zealand food systems. This initiative will deliver a proof of concept to help transition our existing pastoral sector to an agile, adaptative and sustainable ‘bioeconomy’ future, involving emerging, aligned and new sectors.

This initiative is testing the hypothesis that digital technologies are vastly more effective in addressing difficult problems than reductionist approaches. The initiative will contribute to delivery of transformed production landscapes, food and rural enterprises, value webs agriculture innovation systems and means of conducting science.

As well as our individual sector impact strategies, SSIF will contribute to increasing cross-sector impact through extensive engagement with our stakeholders and to meeting the goals of government including the Business Growth Agenda, National Policy Statement for Fresh Water Management, and Government’s Primary Sector Science and Conservation and Environment Science Roadmaps (combined about $2.5 million). In addition SSIF will support activities with a focus on achieving effective adoption and practice change.

For further information on AgResearch’s SSIF investment contact Dr Glyn Francis, glyn.francis@agresearch.co.nz

Agri-food production ($26 million per year)

An integrated Platform of farm biome genomics, biosecurity and decision-centric farm systems for sustainable livestock production. For example, Genomics for improving performance whilst reducing emissions to the environment; supporting uptake of new practices and technologies.

This Platform will contribute to 2 impact areas: enhancing the performance of forages and animals (about $19 million); and growing the sustainable productivity/profitability of farm systems within environmental limits (about $7 million).

The research in this Platform will inform the design and adoption of future farm systems, including those of Māori agribusinesses, and identify opportunities to improve farm systems through use of digital and disruptive technologies, on-farm efficiencies and performance gains, protection from pest incursions and building resilient farm systems to adapt to and mitigate the impact of climate change.

Premium agri-foods ($12.5 million per year)

Combining food science, material science, food safety science to create high-value milk, meat and bio-based products. For example, food safety systems; innovative meat, wool and dairy products; adding value to current co-products.

This Platform will contribute to 2 impact areas: high-value agri-foods with proven functionality, that are safe (about $8 million); and high value wool-based products with proven functionality, sustainable and ethical credentials (about $2 million).

This Platform will provide technologies and knowhow to add value to our agri-foods and co-products, particularly through differentiation and validated functional benefits to the consumer. It will also help ensure consistency and consumer acceptance of agri-product processing, improving product quality, safety and assurance.

As well as our individual sector impact strategies, SSIF will contribute to increasing cross-sector impact through extensive engagement with our stakeholders and to meeting the goals of Government including the Business Growth Agenda, National Policy Statement for Fresh Water Management, and Government’s Primary Sector Science and Conservation and Environment Science Roadmaps (combined about $2.5 million). In addition SSIF will support activities with a focus on achieving effective adoption and practice change.

Tā Mātou Rautaki is AgResearch’s strategy to achieve our long-term aim of leading agri-based science innovation. The strategy also allows for change, accepting that the research landscape and Government priorities will change and evolve.  We have 4 areas of focus to create a thriving culture and generate meaningful and enduring impact:

• Science Excellence: Strengthening connections with science vitality and science excellence
• Partnerships: Fostering strong collaboration, including partnerships
• Mātauranga Māori: Fully embedding Te Ao Māori within our ways of thinking and working
• Smart Investments: Ensuring that we invest appropriately in a talented workforce, fit-for-purpose infrastructure, resources and processes, using SSIF to invest in core capabilities and areas of strategic priority for New Zealand.

Agri-Food Production platform

With $25.3 million allocated to this platform in FY23, using digital and disruptive technologies, we have informed the design, adoption, and improvement of farm systems, and tackling of climate change impacts, with our stakeholders, particularly our Māori agribusinesses. Continued areas of focus include animal health and welfare, as well as reducing reliance on chemicals for managing pests and weeds. New areas of exploration include comparative methylome analysis of Epichloë; designing next-generation water quality assessment tools, and using hyperspectral imaging to detect concealed vertebrates.  

Key achievements in FY23 for this platform include:

• Creation of a Cyclone Response Advisory Group to coordinate and support our response to requests for assistance from those affected by Cyclone Gabrielle.  
• Support of our ECG to facilitate networking within and across campuses, and externally with other research organisations.
• Development of Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) models for dairy, beef and sheep farming.

Premium agri-foods, services and products platform

The $18.9 million allocated to this platform in FY23 provided technologies and knowledge transfer to increase the productivity, efficiency, consistency, and consumer acceptance of agri-product processing, improving product quality, safety and assurance. AgResearch continues to add value to the primary processing sector, developing world-class agri-foods, and sustainable, ethical consumer products with proven functionality, and investing in the exploration of high-value agri-foods with proven functionality and safety. We also continue to explore opportunities with our Māori agribusiness partners.

Key achievements in FY23 for the platform include:

• Discovery of antimicrobial metabolites effective against Pithomyces chartarum, the fungus responsible for facial eczema in animals.
• Understanding the potential of dual light technology for destruction of pathogenic bacteria.

Case studies including selected SSIF-funded projects are published in the 2023 AgResearch Annual Report, available at www.agresearch.co.nz(external link).

Tā Mātou Rautaki is AgResearch’s strategy to achieve our long-term aim of leading agri-based science innovation. The strategy also allows for change, accepting that the research landscape and Government priorities will change and evolve.  We have 4 areas of focus to create a thriving culture and generate meaningful and enduring impact:

• Science Excellence: Strengthening connections with science vitality and science excellence
• Partnerships: Fostering strong collaboration, including partnerships
• Mātauranga Māori: Fully embedding Te Ao Māori within our ways of thinking and working
• Smart Investments: Ensuring that we invest appropriately in a talented workforce, fit-for-purpose infrastructure, resources and processes, using SSIF to invest in core capabilities and areas of strategic priority for New Zealand.

Premium agri-foods, services and products platform

The $17.4 million allocated to this platform in FY22 provided technologies and knowledge transfer to increase the productivity, efficiency, consistency, and consumer acceptance of agri-product processing, improving product quality, safety and assurance. AgResearch continued to add value to the primary processing sector, by developing world-class agri-foods, and sustainable, ethical consumer products with proven functionality, and investing in the exploration of high-value agri-foods with proven functionality and safety. We also explored alternative biobased materials, increased collaborations and broadened our capability in the human microbiome space, and customised food attributes as part of our consumer interface.

Key achievements in FY22 for the platform include:

• Development of an artificial intelligence (AI) driven solution to predict flavour with direct applicability to the food and food service industries. Metabolomics analyses of kawakawa leaves show that predation by different insects leads to different metabolite profiles in the leaves. 
• ’Super forecasting’ and design-led solutions for diverse pasture based feedstocks.

Case studies including some of selected SSIF-funded projects are published in the 2022 AgResearch Annual Report, available at www.agresearch.co.nz.

Agri-Food Production platform 

With $26.9 million allocated to this platform  in FY22, using digital and disruption technologies, we have informed the design, adoption, and improvement of farm systems, and tackling of climate change impacts, with our stakeholders, particularly our Māori agribusinesses. Continued areas of focus include: growing sustainable productivity/profitability of farm systems, and enhancing the performance of forages and animals. New areas of exploration include: non-invasive animal physiology technologies; science, collaborations, and digital responses to climate change; emerging research opportunities for regenerative agriculture; and land management decision-making tools.

Key achievements in FY22 for the platform include:

• Whole genome sequencing by AgR has been an important part of detecting and controlling a bovine TB outbreak in Hawkes Bay.
• Development of an innovative inhouse bioactive discovery that has identified Epichloë compounds with novel mammalian toxicity and/or insect bioactivity.

Case studies including some of selected SSIF-funded projects are published in the 2022 AgResearch Annual Report, available at www.agresearch.co.nz(external link).