Our science programmes

The Food and Environment Research Agency has organized its science teams broadly around the thematic science areas required by its client base. This means that high levels of specialism can be maintained whilst at the same time, by utilizing a matrix structure, expertise can be brought together to deliver multi disciplinary projects. Fera's science programmes and the expertise they contain are outlined here.

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  Chemical residues

  • Residue research
  • Veterinary medicines

  This programme provides the scientific analysis, testing, research and development to help responsible authorities across government ensure foodstuffs remain free from pesticide and veterinary drug residues. Key to its success is the ability to develop faster or more sensitive detection techniques.

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  Contaminants and Authenticity

  • Chemical & biochemical profiling
  • Environmental and Food Microbiology
  • Food packaging & migration
  • Environmental contaminants
  • Toxicants & Processing contaminants

  This programme is focused on identifying other sources of contamination such as organic environmental contaminants, food processing contaminants and natural toxicants. In some cases the work may involve detecting and identifying unknown substances or profiling complex mixtures, both of which can be important in authenticating a substance or origin claim in food stuffs.

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  Crop and food security

  • Biotechnology and molecular genetics
  • Novel methods
  • Invertebrate pest management

  The work of the programme focuses on finding new and sustainable ways to protect growing crops, stored food and the environment from pests and diseases.

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  Environmental risk

  • Environment risk assessment

  Much of the work in the programme centers on the effects of chemicals in the environment. This ranges from the effect of pesticides on target and non-target vertebrate and non-vertebrate species, through to fate and behaviour of pharmaceutically active compounds and nano materials, when they get into the natural environment.

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  Wildlife management

  • Bird management
  • Conservation management
  • Wildlife management

  The programme works with Government providing the research to inform the ongoing development of wildlife management and animal welfare strategies. It also plays a role researching and modeling the population dynamics, risks and conflicts that occur between large-scale wildlife populations and conservation.

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  Wildlife and emerging diseases

  The programme provides research, advisory and operational services in relation to diseases of wildlife, livestock and zoonotic infections of humans. It contributes to disease control by developing effective wildlife management options and by helping implement these.

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  Evidence and Analysis

  • Agricultural & Rural Strategy
  • Risk analysis
  • Statistics & informatics
  • Plant health consultancy

  The evidence and analysis programme houses analytical expertise in risk assessment and probabilistic modeling, experimental design, statistics and informatics. The Programme is home to national GM Inspectorate, international plant health consultancy and pest risk assessment. It also includes teams expert in sustainable land use, agri-environment schemes, non-food crops and pesticide usage surveys.

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  Pest and disease ID

  This programme is focused on the sciences relating to plant pest and disease identification and control. The programme's research work supports both the development of plant health policy and Fera's Plant Health and Seeds Inspectors. Vital to both is the drive to develop faster and more accurate frontline in-the-field diagnosis techniques.