Australia
June 13, 2013
Dr Kathy Ophel Keller, Research Chief, Sustainable Systems Division at the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI), was awarded the Researcher of the Year Award sponsored by Bayer CropScience at the recent AUSVEG National Convention on the Gold Coast.
The Researcher of the Year Award acknowledges researchers for successful research or extension work in fields which have made long-term advancements for the vegetable industry.
Dr Ophel Keller has been recognised for the contribution of her team to the horticulture industry, particularly the potato industry. Dr Ophel Keller led a team which developed soil DNA diagnostic tests to assess the risk of diseases which reduce yield and tuber quality caused by powdery scab, root knot nematode, rhizoctonia and common scab.
“I’d like to thank Bayer for supporting the award and acknowledging the contribution that research makes to the industry,” Dr Ophel Keller said.
“This award reflects a team effort as part of the Australian Potato Research Program funded through the Processing Potato Industry Association and Horticulture Australia. The research has involved SARDI, the Victorian State Government Department of Primary Industries (DEPI) and the Tasmanian Institute of Agriculture (TIA),” she said.
“We’re starting to offer it as a testing service from July this year, and we’re doing initial trials with the Processing Potato Industry Association,” Dr Ophel Keller added.
Dr Jacqueline Applegate, Managing Director of Bayer CropScience for Australia and New Zealand, said, “Bayer is proud to sponsor this award which both encourages and rewards people like Dr Ophel Keller for their invaluable contribution to the development of the horticulture industry.”
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