Teagasc to employ more research postgraduates

The agriculture and food research body, Teagasc, is committing £1 million this year to bring its total postgraduate student numbers up to 100, which will broaden the organisation's research base, according to its director, Dr Liam Downey.

With such investment, Teagasc has become the biggest employer of postgraduates in the agri-food sector, he said at the annual Teagasc Young Researchers' Forum at the RDS in Dublin. The event, held to coincide with Science Week Ireland, is an opportunity for the research students to present details of their work. They are employed under the Walsh Fellowships Scheme which commemorates Dr Tom Walsh, the first director of agriculture and food research services.

Mr Rogier Schulte, from the Netherlands, who is based at Johnstown Castle, Wexford, is Teagasc Young Researcher of the Year for 1999. He won the award for his design of grassland management systems for organic livestock production. He worked under the direction of Mr Brian Coulter and Mr Willie Murphy.

An increasing number of postgraduates are involved in important new research areas such as biotechnology, Dr Downey said. Teagasc was committed to accelerating this process to establish a strong presence in newly developed scientific areas and to adapt rapidly to changing priorities.

The postgraduates are working mainly on projects at Teagasc research centres and are jointly supervised by senior Teagasc researchers and university scientists. "All nine universities are involved in the programme, as well as a number of institutes of technology. Links have also been established with universities in Europe, the US and New Zealand," Dr Downey noted.

In addition to supporting 180 research staff within Teagasc, the programme has led to valuable collaboration with other research units and made a significant contribution to the development of young scientists for research in agriculture, food and related disciplines, he said. Funding is primarily from the EU and the Exchequer. Dr Downey paid tribute to Teagasc's current group of scientists and those leading scientists at third level and in the public service or serving in the Oireachtas who were products of the organisation's postgraduate programme.