FOOD SECURITY

HISTORY OF INSTITUTE OF TROPICAL AGRICULTURE (ITA) UPM

The Institute of Tropical Agriculture (ITA) was established on 1st January 2007 through merging of various institutes including the Institute of Plantation Studies. The establishment of this institute was the outcome of the restructuring and rationalization process of institutes, academy, and centers in Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). This rationalization process was implemented as a proactive and integrated efforts taken to strengthen UPM status as a Research University (RU) and to become the center of excellence in agriculture education in Malaysia.

In line with UPM mission to have an efficient and effective administration structure via the lean and mean concept, the University has identified six new research clusters: Agriculture, Food, Forestry and Environment, Health, Social Science and Science, and Engineering and Technology to enhance research activities in UPM.

In addition, UPM has identified eight specific research thrusts for each cluster, in line with the government's emphasis on the country's agriculture development agenda. Three of the eight identified thrusts, namely, Food Crops, Plantation Crops and Animal Production will be ITA's research focus.