scigest - Plant & Food Research podcast
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Welcome to scigest - podcast-sized servings of digestible science from the world of Plant & Food Research! Scigest is a podcast channel hosted by scientists at Plant & Food Research in New Zealand who are passionate about communicating their science to New Zealanders and the world, as well as helping science students in their journey to a science career. Our scientists are at the heart of food production, supply and security, contributing to human health and wellbeing as well as social and economic stability. Hear how our research is making a difference to food production - from the development of new cultivars and new foods, to bioprotection science and creating environmentally sustainable production systems for plant and seafood crops. If you are interested in a career in science, listen to our scientists' stories, including their tips and tricks, and discover the many options available for a science career. Any questions or suggestions can be emailed to the scigest team at scigest@plantandfood.co.nz. To be able to see all of our podcasts and get to see some of our podcasters and interviewees please see our scigest website at www.plantandfood.com/scigest
142 Episodes
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Roger Robson-Williams, Chief Sustainability Officer at Plant & Food Research, joins Scigest podcast host Rebecca Bloomer to discuss his scientific journey and interest in the future prosperity of food production in Aotearoa. In their conversation, Roger introduces his upcoming podcast, People, Planet, Food, which will feature discussions with individuals from various fields striving to create a more environmentally sustainable, economically inclusive, and socially just food system. Stay tuned for the release of the first episode of People, Planet, Food in the coming weeks.
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra links on some podcasts please go to our Scigest pages: www.plantandfood.com/scigest
Working with bees, and in local body politics means you are always at risk of being stung at some stage, but that hasn’t stopped our latest guest, apiculture scientist Dr James Sainsbury taking up the challenge. In this podcast Andrew Dare speaks to James, who specialises in honey bee health and pollination, about his interesting and diverse career so far - from working with Kaka parrots in Wellington, bumble bees in London Zoo, supporting science involving at-risk communities in Africa, along with a stint being a stay at home dad. James also has another life as councillor for the Matamata Piako District Council for the past 7 years and recently has taken up the challenge to be our podcaster at our Lincoln site. He clearly likes to be a busy man! James’s brother is comedian Tom Sainsbury and his video to support James that Andrew mentioned in this podcast, can be found here: www.facebook.com/jsainsbury/videos/373247890273858
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra information on some podcasts please go to our Scigest pages: www.plantandfood.com/scigest
Knowing what’s in the food you consume is important – to help with that, scientists at Plant & Food Research are responsible for managing a database containing more than 2,700 foods commonly consumed in Aotearoa. In this episode we hear more about what the New Zealand Food Composition Database is and how to use it from Dr Carolyn Lister, leader of the Food and Health Information team at Plant & Food Research. The database is very easy to use with a variety of search options including searching on a specific nutrient. This episode also covers serving sizes, ultra-processed foods and the importance of national nutritional surveys. To view the database see: www.foodcomposition.co.nz.
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra links and information on some podcasts please go to our Scigest pages www.plantandfood.com/scigest.
New Zealand’s ocean space is many times larger than our land area and presents an enormous opportunity to expand into sustainable open ocean aquaculture for finfish and shellfish. In this week’s podcast, Julie Blommaert speaks to scientist Suzy Black about mobile aquaculture, an innovative new system for farming fish that has massive potential for the future of seafood production, at a time when the world’s reliance on seafood as a protein source is set to continue growing.
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra information on podcasts please go to our Scigest pages: www.plantandfood.com/scigest
Today on Scigest, we speak to Dr Andrew Allan, Principal Scientist at Plant & Food Research and Professor in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Auckland. Andy was recently elected as a Fellow to the Academy of the Royal Society Te Apārangi in recognition of more than 30 years of research in plant genetics, and has featured on the 2022 and 2023 Clarivate Highly-Cited Researchers list compiled from the world’s scientists. Andy talks about his science journey, including his insights on the evolution of genetic technologies and their potential to support sustainable food production.
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra information on some podcasts please go to our Scigest pages www.plantandfood.com/scigest
From language barriers to cultural adjustments, international students and professionals face unique challenges when relocating to a new country to pursue their science careers. In this podcast episode, Jay Jayaraman, hailing from Fiji, chats with fellow scientists Luna Hasna from Bangladesh, Liz Florez from Peru, and Tina Wang from China. Together, they share their experiences, highlighting the challenges and the incredible opportunities of immigrating to Aotearoa New Zealand.
To see links to the support groups as mentioned in this podcast and to view our full catalogue of podcasts please go to our Scigest pages www.plantandfood.com/scigest
Science careers can take many paths, some planned and some not. This week Tom Moore speaks to Jolon Dyer who is the GM Science Services at Plant & Food Research about his fascinating science journey from working on innovative cancer drug research, to teaching English in Japan, to then looking at the science around wool fibres before moving into leadership roles. Jolon also discusses his self-development from a self-confessed introverted nerd to someone that can inspire students through his teaching and mentoring.
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra information on some podcasts please go to our Scigest pages www.plantandfood.com/scigest
Today on Scigest we speak to Dr David Teulon - an entomologist and Principal Scientist at Plant & Food Research. During his 30-plus year career in science, Dr Teulon has championed sustainable pest management and biosecurity research through his efforts as a researcher and in his role as the Director of Better Border Biosecurity or B3. In 2023 David was presented with the Plant & Food Research Lifetime Achievement Award. See video link: https://youtu.be/7cJ8pFJruQI?feature=shared
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra information on some podcasts please go to our Scigest pages www.plantandfood.com/scigest
Scientists studying the pollination of native plants have been surprised by the large number of insect visitors contributing to pollination, which bodes well for those planting native species on their farms. This week podcaster and scientist Dr Tom Moore speaks to Entomologist Brad Howlett who provides an update on this research project. The research findings helps to confirm the importance of native plantings in encouraging pollinating insects, and allows us to design plantings based on the best insect species to attract for any particular farm. This Biodiversity for Beneficial Insects research has been funded through a Ministry for Primary Industries’ Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures fund (SFFF).
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra information on some podcasts please go to our Scigest pages www.plantandfood.com/scigest
In Marlborough’s Awatere Valley ground wētā are a common sight on some vineyards, burrowing in soft irrigated soil beneath the vines. Winemakers are keen to find ways to co-exist with this taonga species, including looking for sustainable solutions that could help prevent wētā from feasting on the tender foliage on grape vines during the crucial spring budburst. This week scientists and podcaster Nicola Sullivan speaks to crop protection entomologist Jessica Vereijessen about progress so far on this project.
The project is funded by the New Zealand Wine Futures Fund. The NZWFF is funded through New Zealand Winegrowers levies and project managed by the Bragato Research Institute (BRI).
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra information for some of our podcasts please go to our Scigest pages: www.plantandfood.com/scigest
Scientists are working to find to a use for 1000s of unwanted starfish, which have been decimating mussel beds in Bay of Plenty’s Ōhiwa Harbour. In partnership with mana whenua, research institutes Waikato University, the Cawthron Institute and Plant & Food Research are working on a project that involves harvesting the starfish and using them to produce an anti-ageing skin cream. In this podcast Scigester Julie Blommaert speaks to Plant & Food Research’s Dr Mathew Cumming (Team Leader, Marine Biopolymer Science) who, along with the Cawthron Institute’s Matt Miller, found that starfish are a good source of marine collagen, which is a high value ingredient in cosmetics.
See more podcasts from us at https://www.plantandfood.com/scigest
When developing new food technologies and farming systems, it is critical to consider consumer attitudes towards these technologies. Plant & Food Research’s Future Urban Consumer programme has been digging deeper into how consumers in both New Zealand and our overseas export markets think and feel about different emerging food technologies, and the drivers behind those attitudes. In this podcast Hilary Ireland speaks to three members of the Future Urban Consumer team about this research and some of the initial findings.
Over his 45-year career, Dr Jim Walker has driven significant change in the horticultural sector, using his scientific expertise to develop innovative tools and techniques for managing pests and diseases, which have helped position Aotearoa New Zealand as a competitive and top-quality fruit-growing nation.
Scigest host Rebecca Bloomer talks to Jim about the pivotal moments and milestones of his illustrious career and the challenges and the breakthroughs that have defined his legacy.
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra information on some podcasts please go to our Scigest pages www.plantandfood.com/scigest
Join us as we dive into the fascinating world of marine science with Phd scientist Alex Leonard and new Scigest podcast host, Julie Blommaert. Learn how Alex's journey into marine science paved the way for her current work on fish collagen.
This is Julie Blommaert's debut epsiode as a host of Scigest podcast!
Based at our seafood science site in Nelson, Julie will bring more fascinating interviews on seafood science.
Cyclone Gabrielle was a devastating event that caused widespread damage to the pipfruit growing region of the Hawkes Bay. Today Rebecca Bloomer speaks to scientist Jim Walker and research orchard manager Peter Welch about the short and long term effects of the cyclone to our orchards and the whole industry.
To view our full catalogue of podcasts including extra information on topics covered please go to our Scigest pages at www.plantandfood.com/scigest
In this episode we meet Dr. Roshan Khadka, who is working on a new way to power wearable health devices. Roshan's science journey started in his hometown of Kathmandu, Nepal before a PhD funded by Plant & Food Research led him to the University of Auckland in 2015. His work on sensor development contributed to the success of Plant & Food Research spin-out company, ScentianBio. Now, five years on Roshan is aiming to make waves in his new research space and also finding ways to celebrate and honour his home country and the special ties it shares with New Zealand.
In this Scigest episode we speak to Plant & Food Research’s new chief executive, Mark Piper. Mark joined the organisation three months ago after a 30 year stint at Fonterra, where he held leadership roles locally and in the US and Japan. Mark shares a bit about his background, his journey into science leadership as well as his first impressions of Plant & Food Research and his aspirations for the company. For more information and podcasts see our Scigest page on: www.plantandfood.com/scigest
In this podcast episode we meet Julie Bloomaert, a Post-doctoral Scientist at Plant & Food Research. Julie works in the Seafood Production group - with a background in biology and genetics she's aiming to improve snapper for aquaculture by understanding and utilizing their genetic traits. Julie's scientific curiosity was partly sparked by a field trip organised by one of her high school teachers and it led her to pursue a PhD in evolutionary biology in Austria. Having lived in many different countries, Julie embraces new experiences and will soon be joining the Scigest team as a new Scigest podcaster.
A journey into a science career can be fraught with many challenges along the way. Today we speak to Luna Hasna about her inspiring and multi hurdled journey - from a young girl in Bangladesh with a passion for science, to getting married and moving to Aotearoa New Zealand and how owning and running a kebab shop in Auckland eventually led to her dream career, working in the plant pathogens department at Plant & Food Research. To see some of Luna’s artwork see her Instagram feed: @lunascollection_45. For further Scigest podcasts please see our Scigest pages at www.plantandfood.com/scigest.
Early Career Researchers (ECRs) struggle to fund their research. With very few funding opportunities within New Zealand and high competition for them, most ECRs feel unprepared and uninformed about how and where to find funding at this critical stage of their careers. This episode aims to highlight funding opportunities in Aotearoa, with a specific focus on Rutherford fellowships and Marsden funds, and includes tips and tricks on how to be successful – tailored to ECRs. Links to ECR funding sites can be found on this podcasts page on our Scigest site: www.plantandfood.com/scigest.
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