LAMMC – Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry
The Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry (LAMMC) is the country's state research institute for agronomy and forestry, based in Akademija, Kėdainiai district, with regional branches in Vėžaičiai and Vokė. It brings together the Institute of Agriculture, the Institute of Horticulture and the Institute of Forestry under one centre, covering related fields such as ecology, environmental science, biology, biophysics, botany and zoology. As of the end of 2025, LAMMC employed 401 staff, including 162 researchers and 70 doctoral students.
Process & Engagement
LAMMC's living lab strength lies in its real-field testing environment: long-term research plots and variety-testing fields where new crop, fruit and forestry material is trialled under actual growing conditions rather than only in the laboratory. This infrastructure is open to businesses and research partners for co-creation, allowing companies to test novel biofertilizers and soil conditioners, climate-resilient crop varieties, sustainable land-use practices and agroecological solutions alongside LAMMC's agronomists, ecologists and foresters.
Success Story
Plant breeding at the centre dates back to 1922, and LAMMC has since developed over 490 varieties of cereals, vegetables, fruit trees and berries, many of which are now cultivated across Lithuania and further afield in Europe. This century-long breeding programme, combined with modern field-testing capacity, remains the clearest example of LAMMC's research translating into material that farmers and industry actually use.
Impact & Results
By pairing fundamental research in agronomy, ecology and forestry with practical, field-tested outputs, LAMMC supports regional food security and climate adaptation across Lithuania and neighbouring countries. Its varieties and land-use practices give farmers and businesses access to climate-resilient options that would otherwise take years of independent testing to develop.
Challenges & Lessons
Running three institutes and two regional branches under one centre means coordinating research across very different disciplines, from plant genetics to zoology, while keeping breeding and testing programmes aligned with the practical needs of farmers and industry partners. LAMMC's experience shows that sustained, long-term field trials, rather than short project cycles alone, are what make climate-resilient varieties and practices credible to the sector.
Looking Ahead
LAMMC continues to participate in Horizon Europe and Horizon 2020 projects as well as EU territorial cooperation programmes and national research funding, extending its breeding and field-testing work into new climate mitigation and biodiversity questions. This keeps its living lab infrastructure connected to the wider European research and innovation network, including collaborations such as SIXFOLD.
Key Message
LAMMC combines a century of plant breeding expertise with long-term, real-field testing infrastructure across agriculture, horticulture and forestry. Its particular strength is turning research into varieties and practices that are already proven under real growing conditions, giving companies and research projects a shortcut from laboratory science to climate-resilient, field-ready results.
