The major new Agri-Food Innovation Centre at Duchy College is on track to open in August.
John Stevens, the head of the College’s Food Innovation Service, sees the centre as symptomatic of broader changes in thinking in the region.
“The agricultural community is having to adapt to the changing regulatory environment, and the agri-food element comes in to help businesses make sense of that and to develop themselves further,” he noted. “Ultimately, we’re looking to move the region from its subsidy-based footing, to one where they have real choice.”
“It is, if you like, an SME support facility. Virtually every food business in the region is an SME - it’s our job to help them add value,” he told Commercial Grower.
Stevens sees the centre becoming a regional food research hub, drawing on internal resources but also linking strongly on to external scientists and projects.
The centre has no definite projects slated for its opening, and Stevens argues that its aims are still somewhat free-flowing. “It’s an evolutionary beast - if demand exists, then we will get involved, but there is always a cost attached.”
It is also designed to enhance Duchy’s curriculum. “It will allow our graduates to get actual hands-on experience of a business environment, so that when they find themselves in a real business environment, they are up to speed.”
The centre will offer a range of facilities including training for new entrants and those already involved in the agri-food sector, facilities for small businesses looking to develop products and marketing, higher education qualifications, and top quality research facilities. The scheme will cost some £4.7million, of which almost £1.2 million comes from Objective One, with the same amount coming from Defra.
With more than 3,500 food and drink related businesses in the south west the sector has been identified in the South West Regional and Economic Strategy as being a priority area for the region's future economy.
