ULiège creates a Cross-border Research Unit for sustainable agriculture
On the occasion of the visit of Frédérique Vidal, French Minister of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, to the INRAE centre in Estrée-Mons (Hauts-de-France) on 29 May, Pr Philippe Jacques presented the first Joint Cross-border Research Unit (UMRT), BIOECOAGRO, a unit which he manages alongside the TERRA Research and Education Centre in Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech (University of Liège).
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ndeed, ULiège has decided to enter into an ambitious partnership with the University of Lille, the University of Picardie jules Verne and with INRAE, the new French national research Institute for agriculture, food and the environment, the world's leading research force in its field. Together with its partners, ULiège is creating the UMRT BIOECOAGRO, an initiative that is in line with the TERRA Centre in Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech's desire to develop strong collaborations with institutions of excellence.
The UMRT BIOECOAGRO will develop research aimed at supporting sustainable and efficient agriculture in a context of climate change. It will pay particular attention to the bio-economy through the discovery and development of new active biomolecules of microbial and plant origin for mainly agronomic (bio-control), agri-food (bio-preservation) and environmental (depollution) applications. It will also be part of the development of new health foods.
Conceived as a laboratory without borders for researchers in close contact with regional companies, the UMRT stands out for its cross-disciplinary approach, from the control of plant and microorganism cultivation to their transformation into functional products for different industrial sectors.
The presentation by Prof. Philippe Jacques was also attended by Philippe Mauguin, CEO of INRAE, and Jean Tayeb, President of the INRAE Centre of the Hauts-de-France.
