Last week, it was announced that DARD will end funding for a number of research areas within the Agri-Food and Biosciences Institute (AFBI), and the AFBI site at Crossnacreevy will close within four years.

Perhaps of most surprise was an end to the DARD recommended lists for grass, clover and cereals, as well as DARD withdrawing funding for arable research.

Funding is also being removed from poultry production, renewable energy and biomass research and commercial potato breeding work at AFBI Loughgall. Mushroom and apple research at Loughgall is under scrutiny too.

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However, despite the cuts and lack of funding, it might not mean the end for work in all of these areas. Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal this week, AFBI chief executive Professor Seamus Kennedy outlined some of the decisions to be made and options open to AFBI.

Among the decisions to be made is where to take the work currently undertaken at Crossnacreevy. Varieties of all crop species added to the UK national list each year are assessed there.

“We have the option of either Loughall or Hillsborough. No decision has been taken as yet, although there are a lot of pressures on land availability at Hillsborough,” said the AFBI chief executive.

Despite some industry concerns that both plant breeding and official testing could not be done at Loughgall, Kennedy maintained that the issue is probably more about having separate management overseeing the work, rather than significant geographical separation.

He also does not rule out a continuation of a recommended list into the future, perhaps part-funded by industry. Doing work on-farm could offer a cheaper alternative to the current model.

When it comes to arable research, there might still be the possibility that DARD could offer some funding for work undertaken by Teagasc in the Republic of Ireland or a facility in Britain, of direct relevance to growers in NI. For that to happen, it will probably require the arable sector to make a strong case to DARD.

As regards mushrooms and apples, an option being explored is research collaboration with Teagasc. “We have had some discussions about the potential for an all-island research facility in apples and mushrooms at Loughgall. The more we can share, the better” said Kennedy.