Research Institute of Animal Nutrition at Pohořelice
- its History and   Present

      Research Institute of Animal Nutrition commenced its activities on the 1 st March 1953 as an autonomous organizational scientific and research unit of the Czechoslovak Academy of Agricultural Sciences at Brno, as a successor to the former Regional Research Institute for Zootechny at Brno, which was established by Prof. Dr. Josef Taufer, a prominent scientist in the field of zootechny, in 1922. Dr. Ing. Jaroslav Herzig, DrSc., was appointed a director. The targets of this institute, which was to carry on traditions and extensive experience of the former Regional Research Institute for Zootechny, covered important research projects aimed at forage crop production, animal nutrition and feeding, evaluation of animal products as well as at economic aspects of the sectors concerned. The problems of feed and forage preservation were included in 1954.
      A specialized farm at Troubsko near Brno, Kývalka specialized farm and Omice farm were incorporated in the institute on the 1 st January 1954; their total area was 359 hectares. A Forage Growing and Animal Breeding Station at Rožnov pod Radhoštěm with experimental plots at Branky in Moravia, Lapač and Zubří with the total area of 259 hectares were also incorporated in the institute. A workplace for grassland management at Jevíčko was established in 1957 as a branch of the Research Institute for Feed Industry at Brno. There were two stations for breeding sow progeny testing (Branky and Troubsko) in the above organizations. In the late fifties, this relatively large organizational unit had about 450 workers and the total area of specialized plots was 640 ha of farm land.
      The institute's base was moved to Pohořelice following a decision of the Presidium of Czechoslovak Academy of Agricultural Sciences taken on the 3rd February 1959, and the institute was merged with the Research Institute of Grassland Agriculture at Pohořelice. Ing. Vladimír Ambros, CSc., was appointed a director of this newly conceived institute.
      A big, rather heterogeneous organization with many detached workplaces, 1,050 workers and 2,071 hectares of farm land was established by the merger of both institutes into a research institution. It was evident in a short time that this new conception of Research Institute for Feed Industry was not appropriate, so specialized workplaces were gradually disjointed beginning in 1960. The institute was basically given its present shape. RNDr. Vladimír Ševčík, CSc., was appointed a director of the reorganized institute in 1963. Construction of new buildings on the site near a railroad station in the Vídeňská street started in 1961. Opening ceremony took place on the 2lst April 1966: on the basis of a decision of the 21 st January 1996 taken by the Board of the Scientific and Research Council of Ministry of Agriculture, Forest and Water Management the new institute received a new name "Research Institute of Animal Nutrition", which was to express the institute's mission more precisely even though the old name was still in use. Dr. Ing. Mojmír Opichal, CSc., was appointed a director on the 1 st December 1968, followed by Ing. František Mikoška, CSc., appointed on the 1 st July 1970. The institute had been subordinated to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food of CSR since the 1 st January 1975. Ing. Petr Jakobe, CSc., was appointed a director on the 1 st July 1980, then this post was held by Ing. Jaroslav Přikryl, CSc., appointed on the 1 st September 1987.
      Underlying changes in the institute's structure, size and scope of work occurred in 1991 . Ing. Karel Šimeček, CSc., was appointed a director of the Research Institute of Animal Nutrition at Pohořelice on the lst January 1991, Ing. Jana Párová, CSc., has been a directress since November 1992. The years 1992-1993 were a period of restructuring and slimming, a cut in the number of workers was drastic. The institute has pursued its activities within new limits since then. Under these circumstances, the CR government decided on privatization of the Research Institute of Animal Nutrition at Pohořelice by a decree of the 28th June 1995. The 1 st January 1997 was a milestone of the institute's existence when the winner of a tender of privatization projects, following approvals at the ministries of agriculture, privatization, finance and another government approval, took hold of the management of privatized property, namely of the Research Institute of Animal Nutrition, Ltd. The company has three partners, who are also executive directors of the company and represent its top management. The company is a successor organization of the Research Institute of Animal Nutrition at Pohořelice, taking on all rights and duties of the original state (budget-subsidized) organization and providing for the continuity of scientific and research activities. It is logical that pressures on new business activities have increased.