The Altai State Agrarian University (AGAU), with a subsidy from the Ministry of Agriculture of the Russian Federation in the amount of 15 million rubles, purchased equipment that allows research in the field of agrobiotechnology - in the field of animal husbandry and plant growing in a modern format, the rector of the ASAU Nikolai Kolpakov told TASS.
“Thanks to this money, we were able to modernize and create new laboratories - only 13. The Ministry of Agriculture has been allocating funds for a number of years, but in 2017 the amount of funds was allocated higher: we spent 15 million, and about 5 million are in our work. The main topics were focused on the agronomic and biotechnological faculty, "said Kolpakov.
According to the rector, thanks to the purchase of new equipment, the university will be able to conduct research in the field of "precision farming": this is the use of satellite images, aerial photographs, their interpretation and the use of modern technology, which allows, depending on changing conditions, soil characteristics, to regulate the rate of seeding of seeds, fertilizer consumption , means of protection. This data, combined with modern GIS technologies, allows you to create an accurate map of the agro-ecological conditions of the field. Also, new equipment was installed in the laboratory of milk and dairy products - a device was purchased that allows to determine the quality indicators of milk, and a set of equipment for homemade cheese.
According to Kolpakov, the issue of creating a laboratory for meristemic reproduction of plants (a reproduction method based on the division of cells of educational tissue in flasks - TASS note) is currently being worked out, primarily for potatoes. The possibility for the veterinary faculty of hematology and biochemical analyzers is also being considered.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture of the Altai Territory, the laboratories of the agricultural university were equipped with modern research equipment, fulfilling the instructions of the President of the Russian Federation on bringing education closer to the needs of the modern economy.
AGAU was created in 1943 on the basis of the Pushkin Agricultural Institute evacuated from Leningrad. They are engaged in scientific research in the field of the agro-industrial complex. Today about 6 thousand students study at the university in all directions. For the agrarian Altai Territory, which has the largest arable land in the Russian Federation - 6,5 million hectares, it is very important that young specialists receive knowledge in various sectors of agriculture according to modern standards.
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