About
What and why?
Plant phenotyping is a recently emerged discipline concerned with the non-destructive, quantitative measurement of the structural and functional properties of large numbers of plants, usually those producing food. It typically involves the placement and analysis of data provided by some form of imaging device and may take place in laboratories, controlled environment rooms, glasshouses or fields.
Climate change, an increasing and increasingly affluent population, nutrient depletion and reduced land area available for crop production are putting severe pressure on the global food supply. While biological science has delivered powerful tools for crop improvement, their full benefit cannot be gained without objective data on plants’ development and performance. Phenotyping seeks to provide that data.
FAQs
How is PhenomUK funded?
Following a £500K Technology Touching Life Network (2019-2023) and £2.4M Infrastructure Fund Preliminary Activity (2023-25), PhenomUK received a £35.4M UKRI Infrastructure Fund award in 2026.
How is PhenomUK structured?
PhenomUK has a distributed hub and spoke structure, with a central office providing a single point of access and guidance and clusters of excellence across the country focussing on specific phenotyping facilities (e.g. drones) and plant properties (e.g. disease and health).
When will PhenomUK become operational?
A full business plan for expenditure of the Full Infratsructure award will be completed by December 31st 2026. Spending will begin on April 1st 2027, with the number of services provided increasing over the following 5 years.
What is EMPHASIS?
EMPHASIS is a pan-European phenotyping infrastructure, similar to PhenomUK in structure and goals, lead from VIB, Ghent and being developed under the auspices of ESFRI, the Europearn Scientific Forum for Research Infrastructures
What is the relationship between PhenomUK and EMPHASIS?
EMPHASIS operates on a hub and spoke structure, with national nodes in some 11 countries. PhenomUK will form the UK node of EMPHASIS, linking the UK phenomics community to international resources.
