ProfiCrops: the status of efficiency, effectiveness and added-value

As with the other two research programmes Agroscope (AgriMontana and NutriScope), ProfiCrops began in 2008 and will end in March 2014. To bring the programme to a close, several events were organised and a series of articles were published in Recherche Agronomique Suisse from July 2013 onwards. This last article presents an assessment of ProfiCrops, based on standard project review criteria: efficiency, effectiveness, relevance and added-value. Important lessons-learnt are drawn from the implementation of the research programme. It is, however, a partial assessment, due to the lack of sufficient data. The scope of the strategic objectives formulated at the beginning of the programme made the evaluation more complex than anticipated. Efficiency has been impacted by the mismatch between objectives and resources. A notable example of this is the availability of scientists’ time and its allocation across specific programme activities. However, several tangible results were obtained, such as: a list of more than 300 solutions, interdisciplinary exchanges in favour of project participants and the programme, a reinforced state of mind towards interdisciplinarity, an improved understanding of the meaning of innovation for Agroscope and the creation of new partnerships. Most of these results would not have been produced without the programme.