Norwegian Institute for Agricultural and Environmental Research (Bioforsk) is a national Norwegian R&D institute specialising in the fields of agriculture and food production, environmental protection and natural resource management. Furthermore, Bioforsk focuses on research-based innovation, value creation and sustainable resource utilisation. Bioforsk aims to be a regionally, nationally and internationally competitive knowledge producer and service provider.
Bioforsk was established on 1 January 2006, after a merger of the Norwegian Centre for Soil and Environmental Research, the Norwegian Institute for Crop Research and the Norwegian Centre for Organic Agriculture.[1] Bioforsk has a staff of about 500. Bioforsk is organised under the Norwegian Ministry of Agriculture and Food. The institute consists of seven research divisions, a laboratory and numerous branches spread throughout the country, thus ensuring proximity to both market and challenges. Bioforsk’s management team and central administration are located in Ås, 30 km south of Oslo.
The Bioforsk Plant Health and Plant Protection Division is in charge of R&D related to plant health and plant protection. The division specialises in the fields of plant diseases, weeds, pests, climate effects, genetics and biotechnology. Important R&D areas include integrated plant protection, biological pest control and pest forecasting systems. The division is furthermore involved in such fields as agrometeorology, ecotoxicology and risk analysis. The Plant Health and Plant Protection Centre is located in Ås.
The Bioforsk Soil and Environment Division is in charge of soil and environmental research. The division is specialised in the fields of soil science, soil pollution, ecotoxicology, waste management, wastewater and ecological engineering, hydrology, water quality, land use and terrestrial climate effects. The division’s main office is in Ås, but there is also a branch in Svanvik in eastern Finnmark, close to the Russian and Finnish borders, with a specific focus on environmental issues in the Barents Region. The branch also includes the Svanhovd Conference Centre and the Visitor’s Centre of the Øvre Pasvik National Park.