YORK has become the home for a new £21.3 million crop health centre aimed at linking investments in agriculture with boosts to the UK economy.

Yesterday saw the launch of the new Centre for Crop Health and Protection (CHAP) under the government’s Agri-Tech strategy.

Based at the National Agri-Food Innovation campus, at Sand Hutton near York, which is also home to Fera Science, CHAP is tasked with leading the way in developing solutions to the challenges facing world agriculture by bringing together expertise, knowledge and insight from leading research organisations and industries in the sector.

The collaboration between academia and industry will, for the first time, give farmers access to the best and most sustainable technologies, strategies and protocols to improve crop performance, which centre leaders say will make a real difference at the farm gate.

Interim chief executive of CHAP Ltd, Dr Andrew Swift, said: "CHAP will establish the UK as a world-leader in agri-technology, innovation and sustainability.

"It will create an environment that encourages the exchange of leading edge knowledge, resulting in greater innovation and wider access to the best available technologies and solutions.

"By taking science to the farm, CHAP will help farmers, growers and the food industry to improve yield, reduce costs and meet the need for sustainable solutions to present and future challenges."

CHAP has secured £21.3 million of Government investment over four years, and will work with consortium partners including Bayer CropScience, Farmcare, Frontier Agriculture, Dow AgroSciences, Tesco, Stockbridge Technology and Unilever, alongside AHDB, CABI, Cranfield University, Fera Science Ltd, Newcastle University, ADAS, The Met Office, Warwick University, Campden BRI and Rothamsted Research.

CHAP will enable these organisations, alongside retailers, processors, agronomists and manufacturers, to share resources, optimise return on research and development costs, reduce waste and accelerate the registration process for new products.

The centre and its activities are central to fulfilling the Agri-Tech strategy, which was launched in 2013 to ensure that the Government's investment in agriculture delivers material benefits for society and the economy in the UK and overseas.

CHAP is now in the phase of recruiting an expert and dedicated management team to drive CHAP Ltd forward.