New testing partnership will boost soils and forage analysis

MALCOLM HOSIE , HEAD OF PHYSICAL SERVICES | SRUC

With this at the forefront of our minds, we recently took the decision to work with a leading lab provider to develop the future of testing and analysis in Scotland.

Through an exciting new partnership, Eurofins Agro UK will now be providing our laboratory services to create a fresh, more intensive focus on our soils and forages testing and analysis. SAC Consulting will remain the ‘front door’ to this service and will take up the position of sole Scottish customer to the Eurofins lab.

Eurofins are already well known in the bio-analytical testing world. They were founded in France in 1987, at that time focusing on the analysis of wine. Globally, they now boast over 900 laboratories providing services for the testing of food, environment, pharmaceuticals, and material science.

In the case of their Agro section, which is responsible for soils and forage testing, they have a network of laboratories across Europe and a notable well-established collaboration with the University of Wageningen in the Netherlands; one of Europe’s leading agri-food institutions.

Why have we done this?

They share our mission to deliver quality, seek innovation and deliver value to the customer.

The demand for agricultural data from testing is increasing. Working together with Eurofins boosts SRUC’s testing and analysis capabilities and enriches our current service provision by giving us access to every service Eurofins has to offer. We were already doing great work in this area, but this new partnership gives us an injection of additional expertise and the support of a soil and forage testing network that stretches across many other countries. The relationship offers us faster and more sustainable growth than if we had continued to operate on our own.

This month, we welcomed a group of Eurofins product specialists, technical experts, and scientists from all over Europe to Edinburgh. They met with some of our consultants in the fields of PCN (Potato Cyst Nematodes), soils, feed and forage, and organic waste. The aim was to start the process of knowledge sharing between partners and begin building the all-important relationships across our teams. Allowing our expert insight into industry challenges and opportunities here in Scotland to begin combining with the fantastic service delivery opportunities that Eurofins can deliver. This exchange will act as the catalyst for the introduction of new product and service development through SAC Consulting. It’s an event that we hope to frequently replicate as the relationship develops.

What are our hopes for this partnership and what does it mean for our customer?

Whether it be routine soils, nematode testing, or forage analysis for livestock, we want to make it easier and faster for soil and forage samples to be taken, submitted, and tested. Of course, we are strengthening the trusted, existing tests that provide so many customers with the data they need. We also want to harness the power of the partnership by offering industry leading developments. For example, an app-based digital portal which supports end-to-end tracking of samples and gives users more choice in how they access their results. We are also focused on delivering refreshed and more comprehensive analysis reports.

Later this year, our current soils and forage labs shall move to a new home within the SRUC estate, where Eurofins will occupy the former Analytical Services building on the Bush Estate, near Penicuik. SRUC is currently undertaking extensive building and renovation works to ensure that, when occupied, Eurofins will have an optimal technical environment to provide us with a stand-alone soils and forage service that can grow and develop. It’s a hugely exciting project to be part of and sets the scene for a very bright and productive future.

Ultimately, we want SAC Consulting’s provision of soils and forage analysis to lead the way and work as hard as it possibly can for our farmers. The way we shall achieve this is by blending the service provision of a leading laboratory provider, with our network of existing high quality and respected agricultural advisory services. mhosie@sruc.ac.uk

Working in Scotland, to benefit Scotland, is still our priority. By leading the industry rather than following it, this puts our farmers in a stronger position by continuing to maximise the value of the testing and analysis. There is hard work to be done but an exciting future lies ahead as we strive to achieve optimum soil health and forage nutrition.

Using a trusted provider for any type of analysis allows growers to make informed decisions for their business - whether that be which fertiliser to apply, which variety to grow or to verify if any changes in management have resulted in the right outcome. By measuring and managing through analysis, yields can be optimised, and inputs minimised to increase efficiency and improve financial returns.