Openfolde Limited

Global human population forecasts of 10 billion by 2050 will raise food demand by 70% against a requirement for lower environmental impacts. England's livestock agriculture is tasked with increasing efficiency of production while reducing environmental impacts. Thus, GHG emissions must contract by 78% (2035), with a livestock industry seeking net- zero (2...

The Legume Generation consortium will invest in innovation that boosts the breeding of legumes in Europe by combining the entrepreneurial focus of breeders with the broad inventiveness of the supporting research base. Six species-oriented breeder-led innovation communities will link practical breeding with the research-base in a transdisciplinary framewor...

The biggest consumer trend in the UK food sector is in plant-based food, with sales of meat alternatives expected to be £1.1 billion by 2024, with a 30% year to year growth, and £565 million for dairy alternatives (48% and 38% growth year on year for milk and cheese alternatives, respectively). Currently the largest source of plant-based protein is soy de...

Germinal Holdings Ltd (GHL) have built a reputation on delivering to market quality forage crops which meet the needs of livestock and dairy farmers in the quest for environmentally sustainable intensification of production and profit from their farms. GHL varieties are the products of cutting edge innovation in forage science for the benefit of the lives...

A major challenge facing the UK livestock centre is the need to fulfill the increasing demand for meat and milk products whilst reducing the environmental impact of production. This project will apply innovative plant genetics and breeding approaches to the development of improved varieties of perennial ryegrass and white clover with increased nutrient us...

Perennial ryegrass (PRG) provides the majority of forage for livestock in the UK, and delivers commercial returns to Germinal Holdings (GHL) through seed sales. Drechslera andersonii or net blotch is a serious fungal disease of PRG, and the UK is at high or medium risk. Biomass yield decreases can be more than 1t DM per hectare in the first cut. Few curre...

Red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) is a high protein forage legume which can be grown across the UK. Its usage has declined in recent years due to susceptibility to Sclerotinia and stem nematode, soil borne pathogens for which there is no chemical control. This project will apply molecular techniques to introgress resistance to Sclerotinia and stem nemato...

Lupins, as a high protein, high energy, nitrogen-fixing grain legume, are the only UK crop with a protein and oil composition that can effectively compete with imported soya and provide a comparable UK-grown vegetable protein source for farmed animals. Through innovative approaches to breeding, agronomy, feed processing and nutrition we will develop the m...

The need for traceable, sustainable home grown protein sources for livestock is increasing, particularly given recent price increases for feed and fertiliser. As such, ruminant farmers in the UK are under increasing pressure to maximise use of grassland-based systems to feed livestock. Forage proteins such as red clover and lucerne have been proven to imp...