Ten years after their creation, the government agency Innovate UK proposes to merge three of the four UK Agri-Tech Centres into a single integrated Catapult body. The agency, part of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, says the move would help attract more global investment into the UK agri-tech sector. A fully costed proposal is expected by the end of 2023.
The three centres are Crop Health and Protection (CHAP), the Centre for Innovation Excellence in Livestock (CIEL) and the Agricultural Engineering, Precision and Innovation Centre (Agri-EPI). The fourth centre, Agrimetrics – which focuses on agricultural data applications and regulation – would remain a standalone body.
The proposal follows an internal review of the Agri-Tech Centres carried out by Innovate UK in 2022 to consider their current and future scope and structure. This review consulted a wide range of industry, academic and government stakeholders, including devolved administrations, plus existing Agri-Tech industry partners who Innovate UK says support the merger.
Innovate UK says Agrimetrics has always had a more distinct role and is exploring opportunities to become an independent business. It will look to commercialise the capabilities it has developed over the last seven years to benefit the agriculture sector.
Addressing the proposed consolidation of the three Centres, Innovate UK says: “This new single entity will facilitate a stronger cross-sectoral approach and drive better outcomes for the agri-tech sector across innovation, commercialisation and adoption, as well as research. Together, the three Centres are being invited to develop a proposal to establish an Agri-Tech Catapult, to complement the work of the existing nine Catapults across the economy.”
The Agri-Tech Catalyst programme was started in 2013 under the Coalition government. The £70 million programme was shared between Defra, two other government departments and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) – now part of Innovate UK’s parent UK Research and Innovation – with the aim of helping the UK become a world leader in agricultural technology, innovation and sustainability.
The current Agri-Tech Centres are funded through Innovate UK, which has committed to long-term support for this capability. But this would be complementary to collaborative R&D grants such as the Defra Farming Innovation Programme (which is managed by Innovate UK), as well as direct innovation funding from industry partners.
“With the global population set to hit 9 billion within the next 25 years, scientists have been clear that we need to double global food production using the same land with half as much energy and water,” stated George Freeman, minister of state at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, announcing the merger proposal.
“That is the challenge driving global demand for agri-tech – the technologies that allow us to produce more with less. The UK has long been a scientific leader in academic agricultural research but for 40 years we have not commercialised it effectively. This next wave of investment will have much clearer frameworks and an offer for global investors to back UK agri-tech.”
Innovate UK chief executive Indro Mukerjee Adds: “Innovate UK supports innovative businesses on their growth journeys. Our plans to merge these centres and work with them to develop a proposal for a new Agri-Tech Catapult will have a transformational impact on the UK, creating an excellent environment to start and grow innovative agri-tech businesses.”