The Queensland Government has opened a $100 million Health and Food Sciences Precinct in Brisbane that will develop ‘super foods’ to tackle issues such as obesity, heart disease and diabetes.
Premier Anna Bligh said the facility, which is located at the Queensland Health Forensic and Scientific Services Campus in Cooper Plains, is an Australian first.
“This will be a brain centre for 150 State Government and Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO) scientists,” she said.
“These scientists will work to protect Australia’s international reputation for clean, safe and high quality food and animal products.
Bligh also said the centre will also work towards enhancing animal health and biosecurity by finding ways to protect against emerging and exotic diseases and contaminants in food.
Based within the precinct will also be the recently announced Queensland Centre for Emerging Infectious Diseases (QCEID) that would conduct research into emerging diseases.
The Health and Food Sciences Precinct is part of a total $377.9 million investment by the Queensland Government and Federal Labor, which includes the Ecosciences Precinct at Boggo Road Urban Village and Dutton Park, which will be opened later this year.
“This investment has dramatically increased opportunities to build closer ties with industry and universities and attract leading scientists to Queensland. It has also created 2900 construction jobs over the life of the two projects,” Bligh said.
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