Challenge Centres

Our Challenge Centres build on our outstanding research and commercial strengths and set us apart as a leading force in innovation to support our natural economy. The focus of each of these Centres is to generate solutions and share research that delivers impact that brings about real-world change.

They ask questions that need aspirational thinking as well as collaborative and novel approaches. They develop creative solutions that advance interdisciplinary science here at SRUC and beyond. And they bring together academic, industry and policy experts to address key global and local challenges in collaborative research work. In doing so, they facilitate collaborations across our faculties and help shape the next generation of interdisciplinary research leaders and practitioners.

Each are led by experts in their fields and have strong connections to our core research areas. While the Centres are run independently of each other, they use an interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary approach to work together to solve large scale problems.

Discover our Challenge Centres below.

Delivering data & digital innovation

Using data to generate understanding, provide insights, develop and improve products, and increase resource use efficiency across agri-food systems

Global climate emergency

This Centre aims to find new systems-level solutions to tackle the worsening climate crisis.

Food security

Generating the evidence that shows how innovations and developments in food and farm production systems can make a difference.

Thriving natural capital

Enhancing the integrity of nature markets to drive climate action, nature recovery, and community benefit.

Future food systems

Generating knowledge to create safe, sustainable, and new foods chains that deliver healthy diets and support economic growth.

SRUC professor wins fellowship to prepare for future pandemics

A professor from SRUC has been awarded a prestigious fellowship to help inform the way policy is made – including preparation for future pandemics.

Construction of world-leading UK Cryobank now complete

The construction of the UK Crop Microbiome Cryobank (UK-CMCB) – the first publicly available resource of its kind anywhere in the world – is now complete after three years of painstaking research involving SRUC.

Rising to the challenge

Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC) has appointed eight new academic fellows to lead the organisation on some of the biggest challenges and opportunities of the 21st Century.

Rising to the challenge of responsible natural capital investment

The focus of an SRUC Challenge Centre is firmly in the spotlight as the Scottish Government pushes for more responsible investment in natural capital.

Microbiome science aims to tackle biggest challenges

New research and innovation collaboration networks could help to make the most of the UK’s world-renowned microbiome expertise.

SRUC bringing AI innovation to agriculture with NVIDIA

SRUC has teamed up with NVIDIA, the world’s leading AI company, to accelerate the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) in the agrifood sector.