Harrold van den Burg named professor by special appointment in Phytopathology at UvA

“In this position, Van den Burg can connect academic research & training with the challenges of the international agrifood business today, in practice,” says Marjolein Brasz, CEO Foodvalley.

Van den Burg’s chair focuses on understanding and applying fundamental processes in plant-pathogen interactions to improve food security. The emphasis will therefore be on research, training and project acquisition in applied plant pathology and addressing the effect of plant viruses and bacteria on crop yield.

“Agriculture worldwide is continuously facing new pests and diseases. State-of-the-art knowledge can often serve as a starting point for concrete innovations that can help protect our crops. At the same time, fundamental questions from plant breeding businesses can serve as an inspiration for the development of new knowledge and the training of young scientists. My ambition is to contribute to both of these tracks.” says Harrold van den Burg.

Van den Burg summarizes the combination of these tracks as ‘crop-model-crop’. “Questions arise in the cultivation of crops, fundamental scientific research is often done using model plants, and these innovative findings can and should contribute to improved crops.”