scigest - Bioeconomy Science Institute podcasts

Science careers can be diverse. How do you pick which path to follow? Starting out with a series of contract roles, Plant Physiology Scientist and PhD student Kris Kramer-Walter took the try-before-you-by approach. Scigest host Erin Stroud chats to Kris about his journey into a science career and the diverse range of roles he has had so far. From working in the laboratory to sifting through land p...

In today’s episode, scigest host Erin Stroud chats to her personal mentor Dr Priya Subramanian, Plant & Food Research’s Dr Jill Stanley, and Student Support Adviser for Māori and Pacific students Lizzie Tafili about the importance of mentoring. Acting as a how-to guide, this episode will help you find (and be) a good mentor, no matter what stage of your career you are at. For more podcasts from us...

Our host Erin Stroud chats to students Tom Parekowhai and Rāwinia Wikaira as they recount their summers in science. Tom and Rāwinia cover the types of projects summer students can get involved in at Plant & Food Research - spanning from protecting taonga trees to modelling apple orchards. Covering the highs and lows of working in science and the importance of creating safe space for Māori students...

While an invasion of creepy crawlies may be the stuff of nightmares, it could be a reality for New Zealand growers and gardening hobbyists. Fall armyworm has recently made its way to our shores and, under the right conditions, has the potential to wipe out crop plants overnight. In today’s episode, we chat to Frances MacDonald and Jordan Pickering about why Fall armyworm is a threat to Aotoearoa N...

Scientists from Plant & Food Research have been working with partners at the Southern Horticultural Research Institute in Viet Nam over the last decade on a joint dragon fruit breeding programme and have developed three new varieties. VentureFruit™ has joined the collaboration with exclusive global commercialisation rights to the first three varieties from the programme. Dr Satish Kumar chats to S...

Nighttime cricket calls might be the soundtrack of summer, but for farmers, it's not a noise they want to hear. In this Scigest episode, entomologist Sophie Hunt and Northland kumara grower Warwick Simpson talk about how black crickets are a pest for farmers, damaging crops and pastures; and their acoustic cricket call trap, an innovative new tool to help reduce the number of these pests.

Scientist and Scigest podcaster Rebecca Bloomer talks fellow scientist Tom Moore about her journey into science, asking interesting biological questions, how curiosity can drive science communications, and the importance of good support networks. In 2022, Rebecca was recognised with the Plant & Food Research Early Career Researcher award at the Science New Zealand Awards.

The multi-disciplinary Filling the Void project received the Science New Zealand Team Award for their work in laying the foundation for a new breeding programme for Aotearoa. Their goal was to develop a novel berry that would combine the commercial benefits of blueberries with the colour-filled flesh of bilberries. This new hybrid berry would contain five-fold the health-promoting anthocyanins of...

Achieving total utilisation and maximum value from a catch is an significant goal for the seafood industry. In this podcast, we discuss Cyber Physical Seafood Systems (Cyber-Marine), a new Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) funded research programme aimed at achieving 100% utilisation and maximised value for all harvested wild and aquacultured seafood. Scigest host Andrew Dare...

Passionate plant virologist Associate Professor Robin MacDiarmid talks to Scigest host Erin Stroud about how her family sparked her interest in a science career, the devastating loss of her mother, and personal strengths, determination and appreciation of life. Robin and Erin discuss cultural and social responsibilities of science, how viruses are incredibly misunderstood, and the importance of ho...

Scientist Blue Plunkett speaks to Andrew Kralicek, Chief Technology Officer of Scentian Bio, about biosensors that can detect volatile organic chemicals (VOCs) – or more simply, smells, in liquid and air. The ground-breaking technology has broad applications across a number of industries, from medical and health applications to food production. Andrew also chats about life as a CTO in a start-up c...

Bioinformatics is cutting-edge science that applies tools of computation and analysis to capture and understand biological data. It is an interdisciplinary field which harnesses computer science, mathematics, physics, and biology. Scientist and podcaster Blue Plunket speaks to Bioinformatician Amali Thrimawithana about her journey into science and her fascinating work with two taonga species, manu...

There are enormous benefits that Aotearoa New Zealand’s insect fauna can play in pollinating crops and controlling insect pests. Scientist Brad Howlett speaks to Scigest host Nicola Sullivan about designing native plantings to increase the abundance of native pollinators and natural enemies. By returning native plants, animals and insects, we can create more productive, resilient farms, bringing e...

Wanting to see the bigger picture and understand what knowledge could be gained from the data he was collecting opened up a whole new world of data science for scientist Jian Liu. Jian chats to statistical scientist and new Scigest host Tom Moore about his journey from soil sampling and field science into the world of data science, the advantages of the New Zealand tertiary education system, and t...

Plant & Food Research CEO David Hughes chats with Scigest host Hilary Ireland about his journey science leadership, the big opportunities in the future of food, sustainability and how science can create a better world for everyone. Listen to the Future of Food episode mentioned in this podcast here: www.plantandfood.com/en-nz/article/future-of-food. For more podcasts from us head to: www.plantandf...

Fish are not simple to feed. Their nutritional requirements vary hugely depending on the species, life stage and growing environment. Most of the aquafeeds currently used in Aotearoa New Zealand is imported and being able to produce New Zealand-made aquafeeds from locally produced ingredients is crucial for the sustainable growth of marine fish aquaculture in Aotearoa. Food and Bioproduct Technolo...

Following his passion, curiosity and interest led statistical scientist Tom Moore into a varied science career. Fellow scientist and Scigest host Susan Thomson speaks to Tom as he recounts his transition from freshwater ecology and parasitic vampire freshwater mussels to applying data techniques to get the most out of the information collected by scientists.

Improving efficiency of fruit production on the minimum amount of land while reducing inputs on the orchard is vital for the longevity and sustainability of the fruit tree industries around the world. Scientist and podcaster Rebecca Bloomer speaks to fruit crops physiology scientist, Ben van Hooijdonk about a new system called Future Orchard Production Systems or FOPS that fulfils many of these re...

How we grow, buy, eat and even value our food is changing. In our 100th Scigest podcast Ian Proudfoot, KPMG Global Head of Agribusiness, and our CEO David Hughes discuss the future of food, how value creation and different technologies and approaches can help create a sustainable, resilient food system that works for everyone.

In this episode of our Starting In Science series, host Erin Stroud chats to plant-pathogen scientist Dr Nick Waipara (Rongowhakaata and Ngāti Ruapani ki Turanga), entomologist Dr Dave Bellamy, and Dr Andrew Kralicek, founder and CTO of Scentian Bio, about how diverse a science career can be, potential career pathways and pivot points, and how to move from gumboots to the boardroom and back again....

Wheat is the most widely grown commercial crop in the world, yet flour and bread disappeared from supermarket shelves during the lockdown. Wheat breeder Jamie Macalister chats to Scigest host Rebecca Bloomer about researching genomics in wheat, looking at reducing gluten peptides that stimulate an immune response, and how building resilience in our local grain economy would strengthen food securit...

Yuki Wadamori, a scientist in our Food & Bioproducts Technology team, sunk her teeth into a new career after working as a dentist in Japan. She chats to Scigest host Nicola Sullivan about her interesting career path and how her love of food led to a career combining dentistry and science. For more podcasts from us go to https://www.plantandfood.com/en-nz/scigest

Data and science have always gone together. With the evolution of fast processing, the ability to rapidly analyse data has transformed. In the first episode of our new data science series, host Hillary Ireland speaks to Linley Jesson, Harris Lin and Mark Wohlers, three of our team leading the way in the data science evolution. The panel explains some of the terminology and discusses what data scie...

This week, Jay Jayaraman chats to scientist Mark Anderson about his fascinating and varied science career. They discuss how getting get your foot in the door was very different in the 1980s, fungal pathogen science, including early research on cabbage tree sudden decline and phytoplasmas. Plus, Mark's experience scriptwriting for Shortland Street! For more podcasts from us go to https://www.planta...

Being a scientist isn’t all just lab work! Communicating your research to other scientists, industry, and the public is integral. Host Erin Stroud speaks with Maree McEntee, a social scientist and lecturer from The University of Auckland; Emma Timewell, Communications Manager; Brent Clothier, Principal Scientist and President of the Royal Society Te Apārangi and Brian Cutting, Apiculture Scientist...