Endophytes are naturally occurring microorganisms that live inside plants. They can improve crop growth, increase resistance to pests and diseases, and help plants cope with environmental stress. Around the world, endophyte-containing crops are already being used to improve plant health and agricultural sustainability.
In Scotland and the wider UK, there is growing interest in these products. However, it is currently unclear, depending on the purpose of the product, which government authority is responsible for regulating plants that intentionally contain endophytes. Without clarity, bringing such products to market may be problematic and hinder the safe exploitation of these innovative tools that can support plant health.

Through stakeholder interviews and workshop, this project seeks to:
- Identify which UK or devolved authority is responsible for approving endophyte-containing plants under various scenarios.
- Understand how current regulations apply, and where gaps exist.
- Build consensus among regulators, policy-makers, researchers, and industry.
- Provide recommendations to ensure that Scotland is ready to make the most of endophyte technology in the future.

The aim of this project is to scope plant health and biosecurity training needs for Scottish plant and tree nurseries involved in plant supply and planting programmes. Concerns have been raised about the level of awareness with respect to what signs or symptoms constitute a sick plant and that there was room for improvement of biosecurity practices to reduce the risk of disease introduction and spread.

This project will assess the extent of training needs across the sector, identify which nurseries participate in quality schemes, evaluate existing training resources, and highlight gaps in information and training accessibility. It will also explore how training, both practical and online, could be better delivered, consolidated, and accessed by nurseries.

The outputs will include a detailed scoping analysis of current training provision, a mapping of unmet needs, and a set of recommendations for developing and implementing a targeted training plan. This initiative will support improved plant health practices, particularly in underrepresented nursery sectors, ultimately reducing the biosecurity risks associated with plant supply in Scotland.

Image of greenhouse by Uwe Driesel from Pixabay