Presentation of BioTEC Activities and New Research Equipment at VMU Agriculture Academy
On 3 March, a seminar of the Bioeconomy Research Excellence Centre (BioTEC) was held at Vytautas Magnus University Agriculture Academy (VMU AA). During the event, participants were introduced to the Centre’s activities, ongoing research and experimental development directions, achieved results, and future perspectives.
At the seminar, Dr. Rolandas Urbonas, Vice-Rector for Research and Innovation at VMU, presented the main directions and key priorities of research activities in the context of comparative expert evaluation of scientific performance. The results of BioTEC activities and the Centre’s future goals were introduced by BioTEC Scientific Director Prof. Dr. Zita Kriaučiūnienė. She also highlighted the positive evaluation of BioTEC’s interim activity report, which emphasized that the added value of the Bioeconomy Research Excellence Centre is reflected in talent attraction—as high-level international researchers, doctoral students, and postdoctoral fellows have been involved in the Centre’s activities—and in innovation development, demonstrated by patent applications and the establishment of new research directions.
BioTEC contributes to strengthening the competitiveness of Lithuanian science by supporting the development of a sustainable economy and the implementation of the objectives of the European Green Deal. The Centre has the potential to become another internationally recognized scientific centre in the field of agriculture in Lithuania.
The seminar attracted considerable interest from the academic community. Participants included researchers representing a wide range of disciplines, including agronomy, environmental engineering, biochemistry, genetics, biophysics, biology, forestry, food science, social sciences, and other fields.
During the event, the latest scientific equipment acquired through BioTEC funding was demonstrated. Junior Researcher Dr. Jovita Balandaitė presented soil greenhouse gas measurement analysers; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Jūratė Aleinikovienė introduced equipment for soil health research; Researcher Dr. Marius Kazlauskas presented a plant nitrogen sensor; Senior Researcher Dr. Dainius Savickas demonstrated a feed analyser; and Researcher Dr. Linas Jurevičius presented an underwater drone and other equipment used for water research.
Participants also had the opportunity to visit laboratories at VMU Agriculture Academy, become acquainted with the modern research infrastructure, and discuss possibilities for its application in interdisciplinary studies. The seminar provided an excellent platform for discussions, exchange of ideas, and strengthening collaboration among researchers from different scientific fields.
The seminar was organized as part of the project “Development of the Bioeconomy Research Excellence Centre (BioTEC)”. The project is funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Sport of the Republic of Lithuania and the Research Council of Lithuania (LMTLT), Contract No. S-A-UEI-23-14. The funding programme is the “University Excellence Initiative” (No. V-940).
