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AgResearch science strategy on track
AgResearch science strategy on track
20 March, 2007
Eighteen months after the launch of its 2020 Science strategy, AgResearch has evaluated the progress of its plan for keeping New Zealand prosperous to 2020 and beyond.
AgResearch Chief Science Strategist Dr Stephen Goldson says that many New Zealanders are oblivious to the fact our nation’s economy is founded upon wealth generated by the rural sector.
“2020 Science was developed by AgResearch to re-focus attention back to pastoral agriculture and the economic basis of our first-world lifestyle.”
The strategy seeks to provide a clear, future-focused research framework aimed at ensuring a truly prosperous New Zealand pastoral sector, while preserving the environmental integrity of the country’s grassland ecosystems.
“After eighteen months, the 2020 Science strategy has led to clear recognition of AgResearch’s research goals.”
The strategy’s essence is encapsulated in a collection of five high-level science goals known as the 5 Big Ideas:
• To double the value of
the dairy industry while halving the costs and the impacts
on the environment.
•
• To double the value of
the meat and textile industries while halving the costs and
impacts on the environment.
•
• To reduce the
risk of pests and diseases gaining a foothold in New Zealand
and help effectively manage those already
there.
•
• To work with rural communities,
agribusinesses, territorial authorities and policy makers
ensuring evidenced-based decision-making is used to its best
effect.
•
• To work with researchers in New
Zealand and around the world using the knowledge gained from
research into agricultural systems, plants and animals to
create valuable new opportunities in biotechnology and other
areas.
•
“Achieving these targets will depend on
the extent to which New Zealanders can accept emergent
technologies, such as the genetic modification of plants and
animals, and particularly whether Government and industry
can be persuaded to step up investment in research and
development,” he says.
With a total R&D investment of only 1.17 per cent of GDP, New Zealand lags far behind the European Union that is aiming for 3 per cent investment by 2010.
ENDS
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