The BERTEBOS prize

The Foundation has instituted two different BERTEBOS Prizes. In 1996 the Prize awarded by the ROYAL ACADEMY OF AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY, Kungliga Skogs- och Lantbruksakademien (KSLA), was founded and in 2007 an other Prize was instituted, awarded by the Halland Academy.

The BERTEBOS Prize in co-operation with the KSLA

The BERTEBOS prize was instituted in 1996. It is distributed by the ROYAL ACADEMY OF AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY for highly qualified, pioneering development methods referring to food, agriculture, animal health or ecology. The prize is distributed every second year.

The ROYAL ACADEMY OF AGRICULTURE AND FORESTRY has been asked to appoint the prize-winner and the prize is handed over at a ceremony on the 28th January every year, on the name-day of the King, Karl. The prize amounts to 400,000 SEK and the persons handing over the prize have been, so far, King Carl XVI Gustav, Crown Princess Viktoria, Princess Lilian and Princess Christina.

Prize winner 2026

Curtis Pozniak, University of Saskatchawan, Kanada, for his groundbreaking work in developing resilient, high‑yielding wheat varieties adapted to sustainable farming systems in a changing climate.

His work has played a major role in improving wheat production by breeding resilient, high‑yielding varieties adapted to a changing climate and sustainable agricultural systems. Wheat is an essential crop that accounts for 20% of humanity’s calorie intake. Pozniak is a geneticist who, through pioneering scientific and organizational efforts, has been instrumental in mapping the complete genome of both bread wheat and durum wheat by coordinating the contributions of many researchers. He has developed new varieties that require little water and are resistant to diseases and insects. He has also mapped genes for disease resistance in wild grasses—an effort that may have practical value in developing future sustainable crops. His work is a significant contribution to increased and sustainable food production that reduces humanity’s environmental footprint

 

The BERTEBOS Prize in co-operation with the Halland Academy

Prize winner 2025

Lennart Nilsson, farmer and EU lobbyist from Harplinge

Lennart Nilsson is a leading figure in agriculture, rural development and sustainability with a commitment that ranges from local efforts in Halland and Sweden to crucial roles at the European level.

Lennart has become one of the most important voices for the development of agriculture in both Sweden and the EU. Among other things, through his chairmanship of COGECA (the General Confederation of Agricultural Cooperatives in the European Union), which is the EU's largest agricultural organization with 22 million farmers across Europe. In addition to the chairmanship, he has run a farm in Harplinge with grain and meat animals since 1990, is a member of the LRF's national board of directors since 2012 and chairman of the board of Harplinge Lantmän since 2020.