Agria establishes collaborative agreement with New Zealand university

Agria Corp. announced Friday that it has established a partnership with New Zealand's Lincoln University to promote the research and development and commercialization of New Zealand's sustainable agriculture industry and foster an educational exchange between the country and China.

The Agria-Lincoln Partnership Platform is designed to promote collaboration between the two organizations in the areas of research and innovation, development and training and education.

New Zealand-based Lincoln University, which is 137 years old, focuses on teaching, research and technological innovations in agriculture and life sciences that provide the foundation of knowledge for land-based, sustainable production.

Agria Executive Chairman Alan Lai said the partnership platform aligns with Agria's broader plan to develop comprehensive, technology-driven farm management and animal nutrition and feeding services in China.

“In the last five years, China has invested billions of dollars to build the infrastructure for commercial dairy farming; however, inefficient quality and management of feed contribute to exceptionally high production costs with low productivity,” Lai said. “Addressing this requires a shift to a systems approach to increase yield and reduce environmental impact, which Lincoln University and this partnership platform seek to achieve.”

Lincoln Vice-Chancellor Andrew West said New Zealand is a world leader in pastoral agriculture, and China is rapidly becoming a large market for New Zealand exports, both in terms of primary products and agriculture services and technologies.

“We believe that through our partnership platform with Agria, the campus at Lincoln University can become a flagship for collaboration in applied commercial agriculture research and development between China and New Zealand," West said.

The partnership platform will be effective for 10 years, after which it will be subject to review by both parties.