$785 million in FRST funding divied up

FRST funding – top 5 recipients of funding

AgResearch $67,228,000

Industrial Research Ltd. $54,364,000

New Zealand Institute of Crop & Food Research Ltd. $43,162,500

Horticulture & Food Research Institute of New Zealand Ltd. $39,500,000

Scion $31,506,250

Five largest individual funding allocations:

Cawthron Institute $14,750,000 Adding Value to Cultured Shellfish

New Zealand Institute of Crop & Food Research Ltd. $14,500,000 From Tools to Traits

Horticulture & Food Research Institute of New Zealand Ltd. $13,000,000 Low-Impact Disease Control

Lanzatech New Zealand Ltd. $12,000,000 Production of Low-C Petrol

ViaLactia BioSciences, $10,100,000 Super cows:superfoods!

Key points from FRST announcement:

– 96 contestable contracts with 24 organisations. The contracts are worth $98 million in their first year and $438 million during their lifetimes, which range from two up to six years.

– A further 17 contracts are being negotiated with seven CRIs and two universities under the Stable Funding Environment initiative. These will be worth up to $43 million in their first year and up to $347 million in their lifetimes.

– Total commitment of $141 million for year one and $785 million over the life of the contracts.

– Most contracts start from October 1, 2008.

Media contact at FRST:

David McLoughlin, Foundation for Research, Science and Technology

Phone (04) 917 7801

Email: david.mcloughlin@frst.govt.nz

If you would like to seek comment from a scientific expert on FRST funding you can contact the Science Media Centre on 04 499 5476 or smc@sciencemediacentre.co.nz