Twenty five years of private wheat breeding in the UK: Lessons for other countries

Crop research sectors in many countries are facing reduced public support with public breeding programs being gradually replaced by private ones. This paper explores the UK experience with the privatization of wheat breeding that began in 1987. The analysis presented in this paper is based on interviews with sixteen experts currently involved in wheat research breeding in the UK. Taking a snapshot of UK wheat research today, it would be easy to conclude that the UK sector made a smooth transition from public to private breeding. However, this is not the case. The UK faced many challenges in establishing an integrated wheat innovation system and has only recently developed policies and funding processes that have enabled upstream public scientists to work with private wheat breeding industry. As policy makers around the world contemplate the privatization of crop breeding, important lessons can be drawn from the UK crop research funding model.