The James Hutton Institute has received a £3 million investment from Scottish Enterprise to support the establishment of a high-throughput phenotyping facility at its Crop Innovation Centre in Invergowrie. The new platform is part of the Advanced Plant Growth Centre (APGC) and aims to accelerate research into crop resilience and adaptation.
The phenotyping facility uses sensors, lasers, and imaging technologies to assess plant architecture, health, and responses to environmental conditions. Combined with automation, irrigation systems, climate control, and artificial intelligence, the platform will allow researchers to screen large populations of plants and identify traits linked to yield, stress tolerance, and adaptation to future climate conditions.
© James Hutton Institute
The investment builds on earlier funding of £62 million from the Tay Cities Region Deal by the UK and Scottish governments, which created two innovation centres: the APGC and the International Barley Hub, both in partnership with the University of Dundee's Plant Sciences Division.
Researchers at the James Hutton Institute will use the new facility to replicate both current and projected global crop production conditions. The work is expected to contribute to the development of climate-resilient and lower-input crops and support ongoing research in agriculture, horticulture, pharmaceuticals, and food production.
The phenotyping platform forms part of a broader research suite at the APGC that integrates automation, AI-driven analytics, and high-performance computing. It has been designed as an open platform to encourage collaboration between academia and industry, including national and international partners.
According to the Institute, the facility will also support developments in controlled environment agriculture (CEA) and vertical farming by providing data-driven insights to improve crop performance in intensive production systems.
© James HuttonFor more information:
Joyce Reid
The James Hutton Institute
Tel: +44 (0) 7931 551 988
Email: [email protected]
www.hutton.ac.uk
