FABI Grain Research Program (GRP) Student Research Day 2025-08-04
On 29 July FABI hosted the first FABI Grain Research Programme (GRP) Student Research Day. The objective for the day was to connect students and staff across the University of Pretoria who work on all grain related topics from agronomy and production, pest management and biosecurity, to postharvest storage and agricultural economics. The event began with a plenary talk by Prof. Eyob Tesfamarian from the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences at the University of Pretoria discussing his work on alternative nitrogen sources and biosolids. This was followed by a postdoctoral Fellow talk by Dr Phrasia Mapfumo at FABI, who explored the profitability of sunflower and maize planting dates.
The opening session was followed by two sessions of student speed talks. Students were challenged to present five minute short format talks that highlight the main question of the research, a main finding and the importance of the work to the grain industry. Dr Godfrey Kagtle from the Grain South Africa (Grain SA) research team was in attendance highlighting the importance of the GRP's work to the industry.