The Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment aims to support and enhance sustainability, efficiency and productivity in agriculture, food production and environment protection, particularly in the Mediterranean basin, through impactful cutting-edge research and high-level education.
The Department is based in the historical building of the former Faculty of Agriculture, located in via Valdisavoia 5, as well as in the modern campus in via Santa Sofia 100.
The Department has several facilities, libraries and laboratories to support both research and teaching activities within the fields of Agronomy and Agroecosystem Management, Mechanics, Food Crops, non Food Crops, Plant Biotechnology, Agricultural Chemistry, Food Technologies, Animal Biotechnology, Animal Production, Plant Pathology and Applied Entomology.
The Department has been at the forefront of agricultural, food and environmental education and research since its foundation, boasting long-lasting links with the related industries. All courses are designed to meet the demands of the employment market for land-base expertise in the above-mentioned fields.
A variety of labs, cutting-edge tools and state-of-the-art facilities are available for academic staff, graduate and undergraduate students, such as Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Mass Spectrometry, Micropropagation, Ecophysiology, Biochemistry, Microbiology, Food Technology and Sensory Evaluation.
The Department is deeply involved in the University of Catania agricultural experimental field station whose main aim is to promote sustainable and modern agriculture by conducting applied research, providing educational programs, and supporting local farmers and agri-food system companies in optimizing production processes, analyzing final products and providing consultancy for their commercial exploitation.
A variety of research and teaching activities are carried out at the University of Catania Agricultural Experiment Station (AES), located at the mouth of the Simeto river, about 20 kilometers from the Department campus.
Its main aim is to promote sustainable and up-to-date agriculture by conducting applied research as well as providing cutting-edge education programmes. Furthermore, the AES supports local farmers and agri-food companies in optimizing production processes, evaluating final products and providing consultancy for their commercial exploitation.
The Department research staff is involved in several research funding programmes at the national and international level, in addition to actively collaborating with several sector-leading companies of the agri-food industry.