scigest - Bioeconomy Science Institute podcasts

What does it take to deliver sustainable livelihoods for growers, green international shipping, and support healthy nutrition around the globe? In this episode of People Planet Food, host Roger Robson-Williams  talks to Rachel Depree, Executive Officer for Sustainability at Zespri International – the world’s largest marketer of kiwifruit – to explore these and other topics.   Rachel shares her jou...

The skin of fruit serves more than just a protective barrier; it acts as nature’s packaging—the first element we notice, touch, and often judge. In this episode, scientist and host Hilary Ireland chats with molecular scientist Mikaela Douglas to explore what lies beneath the surface of fruit skins. They discuss how genetic research is enabling scientists to refine the appearance, texture, and func...

Food futurist Jack Bobo joins scientist Hilary Ireland to explore the future of food production. From the impact of agriculture on the planet to the promise of new technologies like gene editing, Jack shares insights on how we can build sustainable food systems while earning consumer trust. With a background in law, policy and behavioural science, he unpacks the role of communication in shifting p...

Most growers and home gardeners don't view thrips positively, but perhaps we could change your perspective. This week, data scientist and podcaster Tom Moore speaks to entomologist Mette Nielsen about her career in entomology, particularly her research on the many species of thrips in Aotearoa New Zealand. Correction: in this podcast we incorrectly state that the editor of the book "Advances in bi...

Most people are already familiar with products like oat milk and almond butter, but what about barley yoghurt? Scientists at Plant & Food Research are developing a new plant-based product: yoghurt made from barley grain.    In this week's podcast, scientist and podcast host Rebecca Campbell speaks to food scientist Gert-Jan Moggre about this exciting project. The research involves trials using pla...

People | Planet | Food - Host Roger Robson-Williams speaks with sustainability experts Saskia Verraes and Martin Rich about the future they aspire to create through their work. They discuss the encouraging signs of progress in Aotearoa New Zealand and around the globe. Amid rising illiberalism, increasing geopolitical tensions, economic uncertainty, and an unstable climate, this episode offers a c...

Gene editing is a new technology with the potential to breed new crops faster. With changing regulations worldwide on how gene editing can be incorporated into food production systems, what does it actually take to gene edit a plant crop?   This week Scigest host and scientist Jay Jayaraman speaks to Zac Hanley, GM Science – New Cultivar Innovation about the science of gene editing plants. They ta...

People | Planet | Food – In this episode, host Roger Robson-Williams chats with friend and colleague Stephen Wallace, Sustainability Manager at AgResearch and Plant & Food Research, Stephen shares his journey into sustainability, sparked by a passion for the environment and early efforts to combat food waste in the workplace. He offers insights into his collaborations with senior leadership to tac...

Success in international development projects requires not only a variety of skills, including project management, people, and technical skills, but also a commitment to see jobs through and meet every challenge, which can be considerable in some of the less developed regions around the world. In this podcast, scientist and podcaster Hilary Ireland speaks to international development specialist Su...

People | Planet | Food – in this episode, host Roger Robson-Williams delves into the innovative world of modern steam power with Jack Donaldson from Mackwell and Co., a Christchurch-based start-up pioneering advanced steam technology for farm machinery. Together, they explore how replacing diesel with biomass could revolutionise energy use in food production, offering a sustainable and resilient a...

Cellular agriculture is an evolving technology where animal meat is grown in a lab using just their cells. This process is potentially an important way of producing animal protein in a sustainable and ethical manner. Plant & Food Research are exploring this technology to grow fish meat and is an important part of our overall fish research at our Nelson site where this recording is from. This week...

Geoinformatics is the analysis of spatial data using technology to understand and solve real-world problems. Scientist and Scigest podcast host Dion Mundy speaks to fellow Scientist Rebecca Campbell about her journey into geoinformatics and her expertise in analysing spatial aspects of data. Rebecca also talks about her experience as a recipient of the prestigious MBIE Science Whitinga Fellowship...

Plant elicitors have huge potential to help protect New Zealand crops from disease. Acting much like a vaccine, these elicitors allow plants to defend themselves better against disease. Coming from a biological source like seaweed, they offer a more ecologically friendly crop protection option, too. This week James Sainsbury from our Ruakura site speaks to Dr Joel Vanneste about his research on th...

People | Planet | Food - Roger Robson-Williams speaks with Mike Casey, about producing cherries without using fossil fuels and running a charity called Rewiring Aotearoa. They discuss what it takes to build a fully electrified orchard and the emerging opportunities for farmers and growers to help address growing demand for renewable power. Mike explains how Rewiring Aotearoa is helping kiwis save...

AI has captured everyone’s attention and clearly has the potential to be a very important tool for our scientists in the future, but there are still a lot of learnings about the benefits and risks of this technology. Podcaster James Sainsbury speaks to Data Scientist Sam Birch about two projects that utilise computer vision, a field making heavy use of the recent improvements in AI. They discuss h...

People | Planet | Food - Roger Robson-Williams speaks with Catherine Leeper, a Learning Advisor at Climate Action Campus Ōtautahi, about the importance of empowering rangatahi (young people) to take action on climate change. Catherine talks about her farming roots, her journey to Aotearoa New Zealand, and the initiatives of the Climate Action Campus, particularly in educating students about sustai...

Aotearoa New Zealand has many native solitary bees, but not much is known about them. In this Scigest episode, newly-minted podcaster and apiculture scientist James Sainsbury speaks to entomologist Anna Kokeny about her research on our little-known native bees. They also discuss Anna's career journey and share tips for budding scientists. Anna is a dedicated science communicator and has joined the...

People | Planet | Food - Roger Robson-Williams speaks with Kate Meyer, Founder and CEO of the Planetary Accounting Network (PAN). This small not-for-profit organisation from Wānaka is dedicated to translating cutting-edge earth systems science into actionable plans that help individuals, businesses, and governments operate within global environmental limits. Kate shares her journey from avid skier...

Over the last 25 years, genetic techniques have rapidly evolved. In this episode of Scigest, scientists Blue Plunkett and Dr Revel Drummond provide a brief guide to the latest gene technologies. What is a null segregant? What is CRISPR-Cas9? How do these cutting-edge tools differ from earlier GMO technologies? Note: Since we recorded this Dame Juliet Gerrard who is mentioned in the podcast has lef...

For nearly 40 years, retiring scientist Rob Agnew has dedicated his career to logging and analysing the changing weather patterns in the Marlborough region. In this episode of Scigest, our new podcaster, Dion Mundy, sits down with Rob Agnew to explore his impactful career from his work in protecting the wine industry through meteorological trend studies, forecasting, and examining the long-term ef...

Redback spiders have established populations in Central Otago and Taranaki, posing a threat to human health and taonga native species such as the critically endangered Cromwell chafer beetle. We talk to Chemist Dr Andrew Twidle, who is leading the development of a pheromone tool to eradicate these invasive redback spiders, the first attempt in the world to control pest spiders using pheromones. Th...

Join us for the latest insights from a comprehensive global study on consumer preferences, following up on our initial Future Urban Consumer podcast from October last year. Understanding consumer attitudes is crucial when developing new food technologies and farming systems. Plant & Food Research's Future Urban Consumer programme delves into how consumers in Aotearoa New Zealand, and international...

In this episode of People | Planet | Food, Roger Robson-Williams speaks with Brendan O’Connell, Chief Executive of AgritechNZ, to discuss the role of agritech in creating a healthier, fairer, and more environmentally friendly food system. Brendan shares his perspective on what agritech is, how it can help, and how AgritechNZ supports a diverse range of businesses operating in this area. Together,...

New technologies are essential in helping scientists and growers combat vine diseases in vineyards. This week, podcaster and data scientist Tom Moore interviews vine doctor Dion Mundy about his latest research on plant disease monitoring, disease identification, and modelling for future climate changes. Dion was one of our first interviews on Scigest five years ago, and we are delighted he has joi...

Plant & Food Research's Nelson site is home to Aotearoa New Zealand's largest flume tank, an innovative facility that allows scientists to test and develop new technologies in both simulated open ocean and controlled laboratory environments. In this week's podcast, Julie Blommaert sits down with fellow scientists Suzy Black and Louise Kregting to discuss the exciting research applications of the n...