Biofortification of wheat with selenium through agronomy and genotype selection to increase human dietary intake.

This project tests the hypothesis that the Selenium (Se) levels of UK wheat can be increased through agronomic biofortification and plant genotype selection. Selenium biofortified wheat will add value to UK grain, bread products and morning goods thereby providing the potential to significantly increase the dietary intake of selenium and hence improve human health. This will be achieved by:-

1. Agronomic biofortification through fertilisation.
2. Elucidation of the mechanisms for Se uptake and accumulation in plants.
3. Identification of genotypic variation of Se accumulation in cereals.
4. Determining the ‘carry-through’ of Se species (total Se, SeMet & SeMC) from raw material to final product.

This is a ‘farm to fork’ project which brings together industry and research partners from the whole food chain, from primary production through to end producer including: Velcourt Ltd. (R & D), University of Nottingham, SCRI, Rothamsted Research, Institute of Food Research, Yara UK Ltd., Nickerson, Carr’s Flour Mill, Carr’s Fertilisers, Velcourt Ltd.. (Farm Management), HGCA, A leading UK supermarket chain.