By Ewan Pate, farming editor

THE SCOTTISH Crop Research Institute has confirmed a major land purchase which could result in the creation of an arable centre for Scotland.

The institute has completed a deal which will see it take possession of the 118-hectare Balruddery Farm at Fowlis.

On the banks above the Carse of Gowrie it has easily-worked soils suitable for potato and cereal research and is within four miles of the main campus at Mylnefield, Invergowrie.

Balruddery has for three generations been the home of the Smith family since they moved from a farm at Cardenden in 1961.

John Smith, the present farming partner, is to concentrate on his work as a member of the Scottish Land Court to which he was appointed in 2006 following a lengthy commitment to NFUS affairs, latterly as chairman of the legal and technical committee.

Mr Smith, his wife Susan and three teenage daughters Gillian, Shelagh and Joanne, are to remain in the farmhouse which is not part of the SCRI purchase.

He has also retained a farming interest through his continuing ownership of 37 hectares of land near Liff which is to be contract farmed by a neighbour.

“I am thoroughly enjoying my work at the Scottish Land Court and see that as the future,” said Mr Smith. “Keeping the land at Liff will still give me some grass roots experience, which I think is important.”

This purchase is a significant move for SCRI as it is the first time it has been a landowner in its own name.

Unlike the other Scottish agricultural research institutes such as the Macaulay Institute in Aberdeen and the Moredun Foundation at Penicuik which own the land on which they are sited and have access to considerable funds either in trusts or charitable foundations, SCRI has been a tenant of the government both at Mylnefield and the nearly adjacent Gourdie Farm.

Balruddery has been bought with a government direct grant but very significantly it will appear on the SCRI balance sheet as an asset.

Gourdie, extending to 80 hectares, lies half a mile to the north of the Kingsway in Dundee and is to be developed through time for industrial or housing use.

Professor Peter Gregory, chief executive of SCRI, said, “This is a fantastic opportunity for us. It is the first time we have owned land and we will have to think of the farm as any owner would in terms of long-term stewardship.

“We are already starting to think about long-term experiments on land use of the sort that have been carried out at long-established research stations such as Rothamsted

“We are now having talks with SAC to see how we can use the farm as a showcase of best practice.

“There is sufficient space at Balruddery to create a crops centre for Scotland.

“We have already drilled boreholes for irrigation and are planning the crop rotation and new buildings.”

Referring to the recent announcement by the Scottish Government that SCRI and the Macaulay Land Use Research Institute should work more closely together, Professor Gregory was quite clear, saying, “Whether the two institutes should merge or not is not being talked about.

“My view is that public money has been spent wisely and should continue to be spent wisely. Where it makes sense to work together then obviously we should do so.

“The work at the two institutes is essentially different.

“Much of the work at SCRI is founded on meeting the needs of producers, whether it be of cereals, fruit or potatoes.

“The Macaulay is involved largely in more diffuse land use issues.

“It will be a case of examining the whole research base of both organisations.

“I want to guard against any element of uncertainty on staff numbers.

“To a large extent the budget will dictate what we can do.

“From 2006 to 2011 we are flat funded, which actually means a 5% year-on-year reduction allowing for inflation.

“We will be reviewing our strategy in the autumn and there may be some areas of work which may stop but there is an absolute need for more work on crop breeding and genetics.

“We need a new generation of field geneticists partly due to some forthcoming retirals and will be advertising for positions in the cereals and potato divisions very soon.

“We are prepared to take on trainees, such is the shortage of qualified breeders.

“I am looking forward to working with our commercial partners in potatoes and cereals to meet their plant breeding requirements.

“We will also have to be prepared to invest in areas which are currently publicly unfashionable.”