Julius Kühn-Institut, Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants

The Julius Kühn Institute (JKI) is the Federal Research Centre for Cultivated Plants in Germany and an autonomous superior federal authority directly subordinated to the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL). JKI is specialised in issues regarding genetics and breeding research and the cultivation, nutrition, protection and health of cultivated plants. Research in these areas is carried out. The focus of activities is healthy and highly productive robust cultivated plants whether they may be found in agriculture and horticulture, in woodland and forests, in urban areas and in cultural landscapes as a whole. JKI work is based on a dynamic foundation of basic and application-oriented research and on putting research results into practice.

The Julius Kühn Institute informs and advises the federal government on all issues relating to cultivated plants and plant protection. In particular, the following responsibilities fall within the remit of its legal mandate:

• evaluating plant protection products and their active substance as part of national, zonal or EU-wide approval procedures
• testing plant protection equipment
• investigating the effects of plant protection treatments on bees
• closing minor use gaps in plant protection
• contributing to the elaboration of national and international standards of plant health and collaborating in the competent bodies (EC, EFSA, EPPO, IPPC)
• assessing risks concerning the introduction and spread of harmful organisms
• evaluating the resilience of cultivated plants and varieties to pathogens and abiotic stress
• participating in the approval process for experimental release and placing on the market of genetically modified plants

The respective tasks of the JKI are laid down in the German Plant Protection Act, in § 57 in particular, others in §§ 5, 7, 21, 34, 41 or 52. Other responsibilities are listed in the Genetic Engineering Act, Chemicals Act and in corresponding legal regulations.