The federal and provincial governments have renewed five-year funding commitments for strategic research chairs at the University of Saskatchewan.
Thirteen chairs will share $17.25 million and focus on crop genetic improvement, livestock development, food and bioproducts development, and soil and environment.
“There are many individual projects within those broad parameters,” said Saskatchewan agriculture minister Lyle Stewart.
He announced earlier this year that a forage chair would be added to the program.
The name of the scientist heading the forage program is expected to be released within the next month.
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Each chair includes a scientist and a technician. The chairs are expected to attract additional project funding from public and private sources to support their particular interests.
The strategic research program was implemented in 1986 and operates on five-year agreements. A recent KPMG evaluation found that the research programs produce $9 in benefits to producers for every dollar the province invested.
Stewart said he believes the research chair approach works because there is enough money to attract good researchers.
“They have reputations, they’re well known and they’re known to be expert in their field. They attract other scientists to work on projects.”
Stewart said the program has been critical in advancing technology in this province.
“These researchers help ensure that Saskatchewan has the capacity and depth to develop new agriculture knowledge and technologies that are relevant to our specific soil and climate,” he said.
The money comes from the Growing Forward 2 program and is cost-shared 60-40 by Ottawa and Regina.
Karen Chad, the University of Sask-atchewan’s vice-president for re-search, said in a news release that the funding ensures the university re-mains a hub of ag research in Canada.
