Sheffield scientists awarded £1m for crop research

Scientists at the University of Sheffield have been awarded £1 million to establish a facility for selecting crop varieties resistant to pests and diseases.

Professor Jurriaan Ton said: “We aim to accelerate genetic selection schemes for disease-resistant crop varieties and develop new treatments that can prime the immune system in existing crop varieties.”

Paul Ramsbottom, Chief Executive of the Wolfson Foundation, which awarded the cash, said “Food security is one of the great challenges of the 21st Century.

“We were very impressed by the research agenda at Sheffield.”