A European centre for life science business
Norfolk’s economy centres on six main sectors, with the life science sector, based on the Norwich Research Park (NRP), one of the key areas of existing and future growth.
There are over thirty science and technology-based businesses on the NRP, which is one of the leading UK and European centres for research, development and the commercialisation of science in health, food and environment and related sectors such as chemistry and computing. This unique combination of world-class science offers the prospect of significant benefits for companies interested in collaborative research, the commercialisation of new technologies and building strategic capabilities within an entrepreneurial environment.
Access to sector expertise is also a key strength. With over 9,000 people, the Norwich Research Park has one of Europe’s largest single-site concentrations of food, health and environmental science research. During term-time, University of East Anglia students swell the NRP community to over 24,000.
The NRP is an innovation powerhouse, working closely with industry, addressing the global challenges of food security, low carbon innovation, (bio)energy, healthy ageing and living with environmental change, where new companies continue to join the dynamic cluster. As well as young and innovative businesses, many large companies from a range of sectors are collaborating in groundbreaking programmes of research across the Park.
Plant and Microbial Sciences
The John Innes Centre together with the Sainsbury Laboratory is ranked first in the world in plant and animal sciences. Here, scientists’ aims are to investigate:
- the growth and development of plants and microbes to improve crop yields
- the ability of plants to adapt to environmental stresses and to resist disease
- natural compounds for health from diet or as pharmaceuticals
Environmental Sciences
The University of East Anglia with its School of Environmental Sciences is first in Europe and the third university in the world (after Harvard and Princeton) in the field of geosciences. It has a distinguished history of interdisciplinary research in environmental sciences and with its associated units and institutes sets the global climate change agenda. The research focuses on:
- the physical, chemical and biological systems of the atmosphere, ocean and land and their inter-relationships
- the role of human activity in modifying natural environmental cycles and adapting to changes combining studies in social science and natural science disciplines
Food, Diet and Health
The Institute of Food Research (IFR) leads Europe in food research and is second only to Tufts University in food and agriculture research. With colleagues at the University of East Anglia, they pioneer research on the relationship between food, diet and human health. The main research themes are:
- food security through programmes on microbial food-borne pathogens, food quality and the utilisation of agri-food waste
- diet and health through its gut biology and food and health programmes
The Medical School and its research and teaching alliance with the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital is an emerging force in computing and mathematics, pharmacy and chemistry.
The NRP’s Genome Analysis Centre is a national genomics and bioinformatics centre, which, with computing science at the university, underpins future multidisciplinary research in agri-food, microbial and environmental sciences.
Norwich is uniquely placed to address the grand challenges of the 21st century. These existing areas of excellence form the basis for two cross-NRP alliances, which are the focus for the new pan-NRP research agenda.
Earth and Life Systems Alliance (ELSA)
addressing sustainability in the face of environmental change
ELSA integrates the physical, life and social sciences to provide an understanding of, and solutions for:
- Living with climate change
- Food and energy security
- Sustainable agriculture
Food and Health Alliance
addressing life-long health and well-being
This Alliance provide a scientific framework supporting policy and advice for promoting life-long health and well-being for all, developing new foods optimised for the maintenance of human health and improved methods of delivery for treatment of infectious and chronic diseases. They focus on:
- Gut biology in health, ageing and disease
- Food, nutrition and health
- Development of new antibiotics and other bioactives from plants and microbes and improving delivery of therapeutic drugs