Principal Industrial Supervisor – Mr Allan Logan, Bruichladdich
Principal Academic Supervisors – Dr Ronja Wonneberger, The James Hutton Institute, Dundee
Additional Supervisors – Dr Tim George, The James Hutton Institute, Dundee
This project will be based at the James Hutton Institute, Invergowrie and the appointed student will register at University of Dundee as the degree awarding institution.
This four-year PhD studentship is fully funded by the BARIToNE Collaborative Training Partnership and offered (from Oct. 2023) by University of Dundee, Bruichladdich, and the James Hutton Institute.
The value of landraces as a source of untapped genetic diversity for crop breeding is increasingly recognized. This is especially important in the context of climate change and the need to develop resilient and sustainable agronomic systems. Scottish Bere barleys are old landraces that have been grown on the islands and in the highlands of Scotland for centuries. Beres are well-adapted to short growing periods, to nutrient-deficient soils and marginal environmental conditions where modern cultivars fail. They require low fertilizer inputs, making them well-suited for low input agriculture. Interest in utilizing Beres for beer and whisky production has recently increased due to their distinct flavour profile and their marketability as sustainable local Scottish products. However, Beres are low-yielding and prone to lodging which makes harvest challenging. High N content and small grain size pose challenges for the malting process. Therefore, high-yielding genotypes with a combination of good agronomic properties and sufficient malting quality are desirable.
The James Hutton Institute maintains a collection of Beres from different geographic origins and biparental populations from crosses between Beres and elite cultivars. In this project, we aim to thoroughly characterize this material under different growing conditions (Western Isles, Orkney, Dundee) to identify genotypes with desirable traits, to allow genetic mapping of and marker development for these traits and to assess the stability of these traits under different conditions. Genotypes with beneficial traits can be used to a) introgress nutrient efficiency from Beres into elite germplasm and b) develop novel Bere types with improved traits. We propose to test these selected genotypes for trait stability under different climate change scenarios.
The Bruichladdich distillery on Islay has championed the use of Beres in terms of flavour, heritage and terroir. Despite initial setbacks with Bere cultivation on Islay, Bere grain has been sourced from Orkney, resulting in a series of popular Bruichladdich Bere Barley single malts. In 2018, Bruichladdich purchased the adjacent croft and since then have been preparing the ground to revisit the sowing of Beres. With both the collection of Beres as well as the novel introgression germplasm, field trials can be sown and scored for a range of agronomic and malting quality traits.
The student will gain comprehensive experience in genetics, genomics and transcriptomics and will have the opportunity to develop the project according to their own skills and interests. Additionally, they will gain relevant insight into industry through our close collaboration with Bruichladdich.
How to Apply
Please visit the main BARIToNE programme page for more details
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