About SLU Grogrund
SLU Grogrund is a competence centre at SLU, whose main task is to comprise a knowledge hub for Swedish plant breeding. The establishment of SLU Grogrund was a decision by the government set out in SLU’s appropriation directions for the year 2018.
SLU Grogrund is a collaborative program aimed at ensuring the availability of new plant varieties adapted to Swedish growing conditions. It plays a vital role in supporting a growing, sustainable, and competitive food production sector in Sweden. This is achieved through a unique and close collaboration between academia, industry, and society."
Strategy, organisation and annual reports
In our popular science annual report for 2024, you can read about plant breeding of food crops, variety testing of berries and vegetables, and how SLU Grogrund contributes to the Swedish apple breeding program. Happy reading!
"SLU Grogrund continued to grow positively in 2024, with the training of young talents, the development of projects, and the establishment of new methods crucial for successful plant breeding, strengthening food security, preparedness, and competitiveness in Sweden. In 2024, six doctoral students completed their PhDs, and 27 students gained valuable experience through thesis work and internships within SLU Grogrund projects. New projects focusing on wheat, potato, apple, pea, forage crops, starch potato, rapeseed, and disease resistance in crops were launched, all aiming to secure food on the table in a changing world, through the optimal use of technologies, expertise, and facilities across academia and industry." – Eva Johansson, Programme Director, SLU Grogrund
From the contents of SLU Grogrund’s annual reports: SLU Grogrund in numbers, new projects, ongoing projects, publications, and media coverage.
The program was launched in 2018 as a result of Sweden’s national food strategy, the government’s Competitiveness Inquiry, and the Collaboration Programme for a Circular and Bio-based Economy. SLU Grogrund contributes to fulfilling the vision and objectives of the food strategy, particularly within the strategic area of Knowledge and Innovation.
This area aims to support the knowledge and innovation system to promote increased productivity and innovation across the food value chain, as well as sustainable food production and consumption. This is achieved through the development of food crops for Sweden’s horticultural and agricultural sectors - crops that meet the challenges, demands, and expectations faced by producers, such as a growing population, preparedness needs, climate change, and evolving consumer trends.
SLU Grogrund is one of SLU’s government-assigned special missions. It is an initiative organized directly under the Faculty of Landscape Architecture, Horticulture and Crop Production Science at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) in Alnarp. The programme brings together participants from several SLU faculties, Swedish universities, plant breeding and food companies, and other societal stakeholders.
The government appropriation directive states:
"The center shall bring together academia and industry and build competence to ensure, in line with the objectives of the national food strategy, access to plant varieties for sustainable and competitive agricultural and horticultural production throughout Sweden. Consideration shall also be given to climate change and access to biomass for a circular and bio-based economy. The development of expertise and new technologies in plant breeding, as well as evaluations of plant material for the market, shall be included. In building the center, experience and lessons learned from the forestry sector should be incorporated in order to cover the entire innovation chain."