The Innovation Farm project aims to showcase the latest innovations such as crop breeding technology to farmers, consumers and policymakers, thus helping to better understand technologies such as GM transformation.

Farming and the food industry faces the enormous challenges of meeting the predicted 50% rise in global food demand over the next 20 years. This must be achieved on less land, using fewer resources and with the impact of climate change.

There are many new methods being used to improve the success of plant breeding, of which GM is just one. It could have a potential role in meeting this increased demand. However, its use is being held back in the UK because of misconceptions relating to the technology. This is where the NIAB Innovation Farm project headed by Lydia Smith comes in.

Funded by the East of England Development Agency, this unique facility aims to demonstrate and explain new technologies to farmers, policymakers, researchers, food industry leaders, students and some members of the public.

“We are inviting people to come and see the demonstrations and explaining how they work and potential benefits,” she says.

One part is the indoor GM crop demonstration with a crop of purple tomatoes developed at the John Innes Centre. Dr Smith explains that the transformed plants include genes from the Snap Dragon plant, resulting in fruit high in health-protecting anthocyanins.

These are naturally occurring pigments found in berries such as cranberries that offer protection against certain cancers, cardiovascular disease and age-related degenerative diseases.

Also on show is a NIAB developed wheat with a lower phytate content. “Feeding this grain to pigs and poultry results in much lower levels of phosphorus being excreted in droppings, as phytate-P is largely unavailable. This can help cut diffuse pollution into watercourses.

Finally there is a GM potato developed by BASF which is resistant to blight.

The second part of the project is a number of outside plots showcasing a range of additional technologies and improvements in plant genetic resources including potential novel food and non-food crops.

Looking to the future, Dr Smith is hoping to expand it next year and into the future by adding more new material each year. Her eventual aim is to have a much larger permanent facility including a dedicated visitor centre, for which she is seeking further support from potential sponsors.