The new Head of the School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences at Charles Sturt University (CSU), Professor John Mawson brings a view of agriculture ‘beyond the farm gate’.

 

Professor Mawson has a wealth of experience in the food production chain, from ethanol production using dairy by-products to post-harvest handling in horticulture.

 

He joins CSU from London South Bank University in the United Kingdom, where he was Head of the Department of Applied Science, leading groups working across the food, nutrition and applied chemical industries.

 

Professor Mawson was also the Manager of the Fresh Technologies Group at Massey University in New Zealand from 2001 to 2008.

 

He believes it is important for graduates to have a solid understanding of how agriculture fits within the food value chain.

 

“I think we need to provide students with an awareness of the importance of market requirements, how these will influence the demand for products into the future and the way those products are produced.

 

“Consumers want cheap, safe, high quality food and fibre products and respond with varying levels of concern to issues such as animal welfare, environmental stewardship and energy use.

 

“In a time of increasing uncertainty around food security and the impact of climate change, recognition by consumers and governments of the challenges faced by farmers and growers in meeting these demands is going to be particularly important,” Professor Mawson said.

 

Attracting more students to careers in primary industries is also seen as a key priority.

 

“There needs to be greater recognition of the career opportunities within agriculture and the rewards and satisfaction that these can provide,” he said. “Research is also critical to advancing the industry and I want to build on Charles Sturt University’s long history of providing research and extension services to enhance productivity and profitability.

 

“My appointment to Charles Sturt University comes at an exciting time as construction of the $46 million National Life Sciences Hub in Wagga Wagga continues. The teaching laboratories, research complex, glasshouses and a phytotron, which houses controlled growth chambers for plants, are due for completion in the middle of 2012.”

 

CSU’s School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences is the largest provider of agricultural, horticultural and wine science education in Australia with operations in Orange and Wagga Wagga.

 

Courses and research focus on fields such as agribusiness, agriculture, agronomy, horticulture, irrigation, wine making, wine science, viticulture, and chemistry.