A 635-acre farm site has been purchased by the University of Reading as part of its plan to invest in research areas for agriculture and food.
Tanners Farm in Farley was purchased for around £16 million to extend the University of Reading's farming resources. The new farm is an addition to the University’s existing agricultural facilities around Reading, which includes mixed farmland and facilities in Arborfield, Shinfield and Sonning.
It also sees the adoption of the Agrifood Futures Strategy as part of the University's plan for investment, which will address the challenges facing the global food system of 2050. It will aim to align the University’s research with a vision for everyone globally to be able to consume a "sufficient, healthy, sustainable and affordable" diet that leaves the "lightest possible footprint" on the planet.
Research will look at transformation to a resilient and fair food system; environmentally friendly farming systems; and developing healthy and sustainable foods. This is in addition to existing research, which includes studies to cut greenhouse gas emissions, techniques to promote the health and welfare of farmed livestock and the development of new vaccines to counter bovine TB.
Professor Robert Van de Noort, vice-chancellor of the University of Reading, said: “The study of food and farming has been at the heart of the University’s work for more than a century. This new strategy will secure the future of agriculture at Reading for the next century to come.
“Our mission is to develop new methods and partnerships that will transform the way healthy, sustainable food is produced in Britain.
"This strategy... will give our researchers the ability to find answers to critical questions of food security and sustainability."
“This is another important step to raise Reading’s position among the world’s best for agricultural research. In time, this strategy and additional farmland will give our researchers the ability to find answers to critical questions of food security and sustainability. It will provide our students with hands-on experience as they train to become our future food growers and the stewards of the countryside.”
Initially, the University will lease the land to its existing owners, to continue to support biodiversity schemes.
Professor Simon Mortimer, head of the University of Reading’s School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, said: “This is an exciting development for the University’s ambitions to invest in the future of food and farming research and education.
“The University’s purchase of Tanners Farm will give us the opportunity to research and demonstrate solutions to some of the most pressing problems facing Britain and the world: how to keep feeding a growing population from finite resources, despite a changing climate, while reducing the impact of farming on the environment.”
