Origin Regulatory News (OGN)

Origin Enterprises plc

Origin Announces €17.6m Strategic Research Partnership with University College Dublin

Science Foundation Ireland supports new partnership between Origin and UCD

12 December 2016

Origin Enterprises plc, the Agri-Services Group ('Origin' or the 'Group'), and University College Dublin ('UCD') are pleased to announce the establishment of a dedicated digital, precision agriculture and crop science collaborative research partnership supported by Science Foundation Ireland ('SFI'). The five year development programme underpinning the research partnership will be financed by a €17.6m investment which is co-funded by Origin and SFI.

The collaboration encompasses a strong multi and inter-disciplinary approach, combining the leading expertise of UCD in data science and agricultural science with Origin's integrated crop management research, systems capabilities and extensive on-farm knowledge exchange networks.

The aim of the programme is to build digitally based and user driven advisory tools that provide rapid and localised decision support for agronomists and farmers. A cornerstone of the development will be the creation of a scalable crop intelligence platform, which will incorporate consistent and real time data analytical approaches to optimise sustainable crop performance.

Commenting on the announcement, Origin's Chief Executive Officer, Tom O'Mahony said:

"We are delighted to join forces and collaborate with UCD, a world-leading academic institution in agricultural science with excellent credentials in multi-disciplinary research. We are particularly pleased with the support of Science Foundation Ireland under its Strategic Partnership Programme, the aim of which is to foster and develop partnerships of scale.

The collaboration provides Origin with a development platform which accesses the very substantial intellectual capacity, advanced data analytics, sensing technologies and modelling resources of UCD. The merging of conventional crop science and agronomic application with digital technology and prescriptive data analytics will enhance Origin's knowledge-intensive offering along with improving the capacity to scale our service."

Professor Orla Feely, UCD Vice-President for Research, Innovation and Impact, said:

"This is a very exciting research partnership announced today between Origin and UCD, which will put Irish research at the forefront of new and innovative approaches for future farming systems. The multi-disciplinary research teams at UCD will use our research expertise in data science and agriculture, together with Origin's industry experts, to address the issue of crop sustainability, a major global food security challenge." She added: "Today's announcement demonstrates our strategy of building a portfolio of strategic and mutually beneficial partnerships with industry which can deliver impact to the economy and society in Ireland and globally."

Professor Mark Ferguson, Director General of Science Foundation Ireland and Chief Scientific Adviser to the Government of Ireland, welcomed the announcement saying:

 "The SFI Strategic Partnership Programme supports unique research partnerships with strong potential for impact on the Irish economy. Investing in research that enhances the agri-food industry while protecting our natural resources is vital for Ireland's future. Science Foundation Ireland is delighted to support this partnership between UCD and Origin. Combining the resources and expertise from these organisations will secure Ireland's international position in the field of data-driven agriculture. The proposed integrated crop model will have global implications in the sustainable production of crops, addressing the challenge of food production for a rapidly expanding global population."

ENDS

Enquiries:

Imelda Hurley +353 (0)1 563 4959

Chief Financial Officer

Origin Enterprises plc

About Origin Enterprises plc

Origin Enterprises plc is a focused Agri-Services group providing on-farm agronomy advice and the supply of crop technologies and inputs. The Agri-Services business through its manufacturing and distribution operations in Ireland, the United Kingdom, Poland, Ukraine and Romania has leading market positions in the provision of specialist agronomy services, crop technologies, inputs and feed ingredients. Origin is listed on the ESM and AIM markets of the Irish and London Stock Exchanges.

ESM ticker symbol: OIZ

AIM ticker symbol: OGN

Website: www.originenterprises.com