The 5^th National Grain Research Platform (NGRP) Annual Research Meeting was held from 1-3 March 2026 at the University of Pretoria's Future Africa Campus, marking an important milestone for the NGRP, as it came full circle after five years of national collaboration.

The meeting drew 196 participants from 61 organisations, including representatives from universities, industry partners and government departments. This strong participation reflected the growing value of the NGRP as a platform for bringing together stakeholders from across the grain and oilseed sector.

The event was organised with the support of Grain SA, SANSOR, CropLife South Africa and FABI, highlighting the strong partnership between academia, industry and the broader agricultural sector. Held under the theme “Integrate: Research, Industry, Policy,” the meeting created space for knowledge exchange, collaboration and discussion around shared research priorities.

The programme reflected the breadth of research and collaboration across the grain value chain, with sessions covering strategic priorities for grains research, industry and policy perspectives, crop protection, precision agriculture, biotechnology and genomics, agronomy, climate and production practices, and resilience in South African grain systems. Several FABIans took part in discussions, while Dave Berger, Fanelesibonge Hlabisa, Phrasia Mapfumo, Trystan Nadasen, David Read, Nhlanhla Shabangu, Cobus Visagie, Edwin Wanjofu, and Neriman Yilmaz also presented their research (see Programme). The meeting also included a PhD student presentation competition and an industry site visit with the South African Grain Laboratory, South African Grain Information Services, Crop Estimates Committee, and Brand Republic.

The 2026 meeting was especially significant because it returned to Pretoria, where the first meeting was hosted by FABI at the University of Pretoria in 2022. Since then, the annual meeting has been hosted by Stellenbosch University (2023), the University of the Free State (2024), and North-West University and the ARC (2025). With this year’s meeting once again held at the University of Pretoria, the NGRP completed a full circle of institutional partnership and national collaboration.

FABI extends its appreciation to Grain SA, SANSOR, CropLife South Africa, all presenters, participants, student support, and organisers whose contributions made the meeting a success.