Agricultural college aims to make Gloucestershire hub for agri-tech

Hartpury college has secured £1 million investment for their smart farming project
Hartpury college has secured £1 million investment for their smart farming project

An agricultural education college is set on making Gloucestershire the go-to hub for agri-tech following £1m funding for a new initiative.

Hartpury College and University Centre Hartpury have been successful in securing £1m in Growth Deal funding from the GFirst Local Enterprise Partnership to contribute towards a new Agri Tech Centre.

The centre will be a hub to utilise the latest smart farming techniques, aimed at benefiting the county.

With the world population set to reach 9.7 billion by 2050, Hartpury says it wants to be playing their part in aiming to secure a sustainable future.

Their ‘Tech to Plate’ concept will involve helping to improve the productivity of livestock and generating higher quality products for consumers.

The centre will provide access to new technology facilities that will demonstrate how precision farming techniques can improve productivity.

Hartpury wants to help make Gloucestershire the leading agri-tech county. The college's centre will provide a link for the county's producers, processors and consumers.

Hartpury Principal, Russell Marchant, said: “The future of farm productivity will rely increasingly on the application of technology to improve productivity. This is hopefully just the start of Gloucestershire playing a leading role in agri-tech innovation and knowledge transfer into industry.

“Our aim is that the centre continually engages with both suppliers and the industry to ensure that new technologies are introduced and the centre is used effectively to demonstrate impact to agriculture industry.

“It will also enable us to continue to educate the next generation of agriculturalists so they’re up-to-date with the industry’s most recent technology. This will allow them to play a leading role in continuing to develop the industry.”