Search

After 10 years, SEFARI Gateway, Scotland’s Centre of Expertise for Knowledge Exchange and Innovation for the Environment, Natural Resources and Agriculture (ENRA) Research Portfolio, closes today (30^th April 2026). 

In a letter of 15^th January 2026, the Scottish Government explained the decision to no longer fund the Centre, and praised its “extraordinary work”:

 “The Scottish Government has decided not to take up the final extension year for the Centre for Knowledge Exchange and Innovation (SEFARI-Gateway). 

“This does not reflect at all on the extraordinary work that you and your team have put in since its conception a decade ago. 

“Unfortunately our Centres of Expertise Budget has been significantly reduced and we are therefore unable to fund CKEI in its fifth year. I know just how much time and energy has gone into the Gateway over this period, and the quality of work has been extremely high.”

SEFARI continues to deliver the Environment, Natural Resources & Agriculture (ENRA) Strategic Research Programme for Scottish Government and the SEFARI Institutes are currently developing research in collaboration with partners across Scotland for the next Strategic Programme, due to commence in April 2027. 

The SEFARI website, representing research delivered across the ENRA Portfolio as well as SEFARI’s wider research across Scotland, UK and internationally, will continue to operate, providing continued access to the Strategic Programme research reports, case studies and impact assessments, as well as continuing to serve as an archive of past strategic research.

The SEFARI Gateway team is enormously grateful to all the researchers and stakeholders with whom we have worked over the past decade. SEFARI Gateway has made it a mission to forge lasting relationships across environment, land-use, agriculture, food sector and rural communities and, in so doing, has worked across policy, industry and communities to break down barriers, open ‘silos’, and fund and collaborate on crucial high priority research needs for Scotland. SEFARI Gateway has worked tirelessly to support a legacy of impact, both from our work and more widely from that of the Strategic Research Portfolio and SEFARI. 

Director Charles Bestwick said: “We are hugely proud of what we have achieved and hope the legacy of our work will continue. The Gateway team has seen many changes over its 10 years but has always retained an enduring focus on working through partnership. 

It is a crucial time for delivering innovation and change through research, with huge pressures facing Scotland, wider UK and the world relating to environment, food, health and economic security.  These pressures are immediate and accelerating. Genuine partnership working, often maintaining relationships to deliver change long after the original funding for the research has ended, is a crucial challenge for all, but at the heart of what SEFARI Gateway endeavoured and so often achieved 

“Whether we are a researcher, knowledge broker, policy officer, agency, sector body or community group, we all have responsibility for driving success from research and ultimately its impact - and we very much welcome the emphasis on a widening of the impact culture at the heart of the forthcoming Strategic Programme”.

“Ultimately our successes in Gateway have been forged in and built on collaboration - and we once again thank all our partners for the help and support that they have given to SEFARI Gateway over the past 10 years, it has been a privilege to work with you”

For more information about publishing research, reports, case studies and impact studies on the SEFARI website contact Amy.Cooper@hutton.ac.uk or info@sefari.scot 

This research used participatory approaches to identify inefficiencies, challenges and strengths across Scottish ruminant supply chains. Stakeholders from across beef, dairy, sheep and wider industry contributed their perspectives. The findings highlighted both shared and sector specific challenges, the complexity of the supply chain and the importance of incorporating stakeholder views into policy development.#

Learn about the full SRUC project through the following link: Data driven innovations for improved sustainability of ruminant productions systems | SEFARI

This guidance seeks to safeguard the Scotch Whisky industry’s peat supply chain and credibility by outlining clear criteria for responsible peat extraction and harvesting. It expands on the Scotch Whisky Association’s Commitment to Responsible Peat Use, notably its first pillar of Responsible Extraction1, which should be read in conjunction with this guidance. It provides the industry with clear, actionable guiding principles and 
serves as a toolkit for responsible approaches to existing and future peat harvesting. The guiding principles of responsible extraction are underpinned by evidence and advice provided by key organisations, including NatureScot and SEPA, who have worked to deliver peatland management and restoration at scale across Scotland as part of broader efforts towards mitigating climate change and restoring biodiversity.  

Authors: Dr. Rosie Everett, Imogen Cadwaladr-Rimmer, Jack Zuill

SRUC

Toxoplasma gondii is widely regarded as a classic One Health parasite because its impact spans human health, animal health, and the environment. The most recent data from Public Health Scotland shows 47 laboratory-confirmed human cases of toxoplasmosis in 2023, continuing a steady rise over the past decade. Cats (domestic and wild) are the only known definitive hosts of the parasite, capable of shedding millions of oocysts in their faeces that can persist in soil and water for long periods of time, leading to widespread environmental contamination and exposing livestock, wildlife, and humans to infection. The parasite causes significant veterinary disease, including abortion in sheep and goats, whilst also posing a major public health concern through foodborne transmission, environmental exposure, and congenital infection. Fatal infections have also been reported in some marine mammals. As transmission pathways cross ecosystem boundaries, effective control of T. gondii requires a co-ordinated approach integrating public health, veterinary medicine, agriculture, and environmental management. 

The aim of the symposium was to bring together experts and stakeholders from a wide range of disciplines to discuss a One Health approach to tackling toxoplasmosis (Table 1). We wanted to provide a platform to discuss and assess the current epidemiological landscape of toxoplasmosis and to share ideas and innovations for detection and control, whilst also identifying critical knowledge gaps. These discussions will help shape future research priorities and inform effective policy and intervention strategies to reduce the burden of T. gondii across sectors.

Thirty-two invited participants took part in the symposium which was held at the Moredun Research Institute on 20th November 2025. The morning sessions consisted of talks from experts in the field, focusing on public health perspectives, clinical data, veterinary impacts, vaccination, environmental and foodborne transmission, and developments in state-of-the-art research tools to aid future drug and vaccine development. Two of the speakers were able to provide European perspectives, detailing outcomes from a multi-country, collaborative project addressing source attribution of T. gondii, and summarising current parasite genotyping tools available to aid epidemiological studies and source tracking during outbreaks (www.onehealthejp.eu/ projects/foodborne-zoonoses/jrp-toxosources). One of the invited participants was from Brazil, so could also share experiences from South America during the discussions. The afternoon session comprised three breakout discussion groups focusing on identifying knowledge gaps and future steps. 

We conducted a participant survey at the start and end of the day to gather opinions on priority areas for research, barriers to control, engagement with other sectors, and next steps. 

This report summarises the main outcomes from the day and highlights areas for future prioritisation to tackle toxoplasmosis.

Toxoplasmosis is a globally important disease caused by Toxoplasma gondii affecting both human and animal health and spreading through environmental pathways such as soil, water, and food. As transmission of the parasite crosses species, sectors and ecosystems, effective control cannot be achieved by any single discipline and instead requires co-ordinated collaboration between multiple sectors. 

A One Health symposium held at the Moredun Research Institute in November 2025 brought together cross‑sector experts to discuss epidemiology, identify key knowledge gaps and explore control strategies for T. gondii. Discussions highlighted the underestimation of disease burden, limited public awareness, and the need for sustained interdisciplinary collaboration, guiding future research, policy and co-ordinated action.