The Courier & Advertiser (Angus and Dundee)
JHI hit by £2.2m deficit
One of Scotland’s top agricultural research bodies, the James Hutton Institute (JHI), posted a loss of £2.2 million last year.
The latest accounts for the James Hutton Group, which includes JHI and its commercial arm James Hutton Limited (JHL), show a deficit of £2.2m for the year to March 31 2020. This compares to a deficit of £1.5m the year before.
The accounts show the group’s income for the year was £35.8m – down from £36.7m in the year before – and its expenditure was £37.98m, compared to £38.25m in 2019.
In his report with the accounts, JHI chairman Dr Ian Gambles said the bulk of the institute’s income, totalling £21.8m, was in the form of Scottish Government Rural and Environmental Science and Analytical Services (RESAS) funding.
He said the institute, which has bases at Invergowrie, near Dundee, and Aberdeen, was continuing to look for opportunities to increase its external earnings and commercial sales, to reduce reliance on RESAS funding.
“In 2019-20, we recognised income on NONRESAS research grants and contracts of £7.8m, £0.2m higher than the previous year,” added Dr Gambles.
“Although only a slight increase, significant effort had continued during the year to sustain and increase these sources of funding.”
He said income from JHL – which aims to translate JHI scientific research into commercial services, licences, and products – decreased to £3.5m, from £4.1m, and the company made a loss of £300,000.
“This loss reflected a combination of commercial and operational challenges, in particular resourcing and performance challenges within the analytical services division,” said Dr Gambles.
“Measures have now been put in place to address these challenges, with a view to improving performance.”
Staff costs increased by £421,000 to £23.9m due to “one-off costs” associated with restructuring in the second half of the year, while the staff count reduced to 556, from 578 previously.
Looking to the future, Dr Gambles said the £62m investment in the international barley hub and advanced plant growth centre at Invergowrie would be a “major milestone” for the institute.