Cawthron Institute
It works with regional councils, government departments, major industries, private companies, and other research organisations throughout New Zealand and around the world.
Its scientists include experts in aquaculture, marine and freshwater resources, food safety and quality, algal technologies, biosecurity and analytical testing.
[2] Seven local public officials were appointed as trustees to execute his will, and they in turn set up an advisory commission (four prominent scientists plus the chairman of the Board of Agriculture).
In 1917, the New Zealand government insisted that £40,000 in stamp duty was owed on the bequest; this decision was disputed and was subject to repeated legal challenges over the following 18 years.
[4] Thomas Easterfield, the founder and head of the Chemistry Department at Victoria University, was appointed in 1919 as the Cawthron Institute's first director and the first staff member hired.
[9] In 1920, Robin Tillyard was appointed chief of the department of biology at Cawthron, and his 1926 book Insects of Australia and New Zealand became a reference for many decades.
[11] Foundation staff member Theodore Rigg was appointed director of a DSIR survey of volcanic ash soils in central North Island.
Finally, in 1936, the government approved compensation for the £40,000 death duties paid in 1917: an annual subsidy of £2000 for entomological, fruit, soil and tobacco research.
[34] A bipartisan agreement in 1990 led to a major restructuring of New Zealand's science system: the separation of policy, funding, and operations, and the creation of MoRST and FRST.
That year the New Zealand aquaculture industry introduced regular phytoplankton monitoring of harvest areas as an early warning of the presence of toxic algae.
[39] That year LC-MS chemical analysis methods developed by Cawthron were introduced for routine marine biotoxin monitoring of farmed shellfish throughout New Zealand.
[42] Cawthron has a number of research programmes supported by various government contestable funds, in particular the Endeavour Fund,[43] focused in the following areas: Seafood sector An international team led by Cawthron is developing farming systems enabling multiple shellfish species to be grown in open ocean sites, with sustainable production efficiencies and maintenance costs.
[44][45][46][47] Research is underway to increase the sustainability and efficiency of the wild scampi capture fishery and explore new techniques for a land-based production of this high-value species.
[48] A study of the factors influencing the feed conversion efficiency of farmed Chinook salmon aims to improve husbandry, health and fish quality, while reducing environmental impacts.
The research covers factors that drive harmful algal bloom events, molecular technologies for detection, marine biotoxin analysis, and threats from pathogenic bacteria and viruses.
[56] Emerging organic contaminants pose a risk to New Zealand aquatic ecosystems, have the potential to induce antimicrobial resistance and may be present in food.
As well as characterising present biodiversity and water quality, the team[72] is exploring how and why the lakes have changed over the past 1000 years by collecting and analysing sediment cores.
The information is interwoven with traditional Māori knowledge to provide a richer understanding about the value and health of New Zealand's lakes, as well as the impact of natural and human activity.
Their aim is to prevent marine pests getting a foothold by developing molecular tools to detect them at low densities, and with simulation models assist managers achieve better resource allocation.
[77] Antifouling compounds must be potent against problematic biofouling organisms when applied to artificial surfaces in the sea but benign against marine life if released into the environment, as well as cost-effective to synthesize at an industrial scale.
