The Princess Royal officially opened Scotland's National Seed Store held at SCRI, the world-ranking crop research centre at Invergowrie in Perth and Kinross, on Monday.

The store houses seed and germplasm collections that are of world importance in the struggle to protect biodiversity.

The brief ceremony came during a two-hour visit to new, multi-million pound, glasshouses at the Invergowrie site.

The Princess Royal met some of the 350 staff and workers at SCRI and also paid a visit to the research institute's farm at Balruddery in Angus.

The Princess Royal was guided around the research centre by its Director, Professor Peter Gregory.

He said: "This is a great honour for SCRI and a real boost to the scientists and staff here. The National Seed Store and Balruddery Farm are home to important elements of natural biodiversity which we use to improve commercial varieties

"We have been outlining to Her Royal Highness the significant economic contribution SCRI makes to Scotland and the UK. The soft fruit and potato varieties we breed here have become market leaders. We are making major inroads in the fight against crop pests and diseases that cost farmers millions of pounds.

"We are also very proud to be part of Dundee and Scotland's thriving, life-sciences sector."  

The visit is a major boost to SCRI which next year will merge with the Macaulay Land Use Research Institute in Aberdeen to form a new, food, land and climate change research organisation. It will be the first of its kind in Europe and one of the biggest such centres in the UK.