‘FutureMilk’ funding welcomed

THE Government has announced funding for the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) FutureMilk Centre, bringing to 17 the total number of funded SFI research centres.

The FutureMilk Centre will be hosted by Teagasc in partnership with the Tyndall National Institute; Ireland’s national microelectronics institute; the Telecommunications Software & Systems Group (TSSG) at Waterford Institute of Technology and the Insight Centre for Data Analytics (at UCD, NUIG, DCU).

FutureMilk represents a unique collaboration between Agri-Food and ICT research institutes as well as leading Irish/multinational food and ICT companies.

The centre director, Dr Donagh Berry from Teagasc, said: “The FutureMilk Centre aims to be an agent of growth for the Irish dairy industry by being a world leader in fundamental and translational research for precision pasture-based dairying. The vision of the FutureMilk Centre is to be a world leader in the Agri-Food technology sector through innovation and enhanced sustainability across the dairy supply chain, positively impacting the environment, animal well-being and the health of consumers. This will be achieved by greatly improving the soil-to-gut supply chain connectivity; thereby improving resource efficiency, better meeting consumers’ expectations and improving profitability and resilience”

Teagasc Director of Research, Professor Frank O’Mara said: “FutureMilk will create exciting linkages between the Irish AgriFood industry, the ICT industry, and Ireland’s leading agri-food and technology research institutes in a large-scale innovation ecosystem. The opportunities that arise at the interface between Agri-Food and ICT will be the basis for the competitive advantage and international reputation of the centre and Ireland as a whole.”

The FutureMilk principal investigator team are supported by 22 funded investigators, 43 academic collaborators and 46 industry collaborators. FutureMilk will hire 30 post-doctoral researchers and 54 postgraduate students.