History

National Taiwan University's College of Bioresources and Agriculture was originally founded as the College of Science and Agriculture of Taihoku Imperial University. In 1943 the College of Science and Agriculture was divided into the College of Science and College of Agriculture. In August 2002, the College of Agriculture was renamed the College of Bioresources and Agriculture.

There were seven departments in the College when Taiwan was restored to the Chinese Government in 1945. They were Agronomy, Agricultural Engineering, Agricultural Chemistry, Agricultural Biology, Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Medicine, Agricultural Economics, and Horticulture. Since 1945 the College has steadily expanded its programs to meet the growing demands of agricultural research. There are twelve departments now: Bioenvironmental Systems Engineering, Agricultural Chemistry, Plant Pathology and Microbiology, Entomology, Forestry and Resource Conservation, Animal Science and Technology, Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Veterinary Medicine, Agricultural Economics, Bio-industry Communication and Development, and Bio-Industrial Mechatronics Engineering. Each department has a graduate institute, providing both Master and Ph.D. degrees. There are also three graduate institutes: the Institute of Food Science and Technology, Institute of Biotechnology, and Graduate School of Veterinary Clinical Science.

The academic program of the college includes basic biology, life science theory, and various applied skills involved in increasing production and biological protection. The goal is to train students to understand basic life phenomenon and related facts and methods, in order to cultivate a working knowledge of applied biological technology. In order to satisfy the national needs for agricultural development, we have eight affiliated organizations: the Experimental Farm, Experimental Forest, Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Highlands Experiment Farm, Agricultural Exhibition Hall, Agricultural Extension Committee, Education and Research Center for Agricultural Automation, and Hydrotech Research Laboratory. In addition, four organizations are informally affiliated with our college: the Farm Machinery Workshop, Phytotron Laboratory, Electron Microscope Laboratory, and Isotope Laboratory. The buildings of the College of Bioresources and Agriculture are widely scattered around the main campus of the university. They include the General Building, Agronomy Hall, Agricultural Engineering Hall, Agricultural Chemistry Halls No. 1 and 2, Food Processing Plant, Entomology Hall, Forestry Hall, Horticulture Hall, Horticulture Green House, Horticultural Products Processing Plant, Landscape Gardening Hall, Agricultural Machinery Hall, Food Science and Technology Hall, and Floriculture Hall.

Our college is actively developing all agriculture-related fields. We have moved rapidly to develop agricultural production technology in order to meet international agriculture research standards. We also research agricultural management, agricultural environment protection, and agricultural sustainability in order to meet national agricultural demands. We also promote agricultural standards in Taiwan. The Institutes of Entomology and Forestry have offered graduate programs for on-the-job students since 1999 and the Institute of Agricultural Economics has done so since 2000.

Our college has established a garden for agricultural education on Zhoushan Rd. and plans to build a garden for biological education as well. The College is also garden for agricultural education near Zhoushan Rd., as well as a biological pool that will include a spring and a wetland creature habitat.

The twenty-first century will be the century of bioresources, bioinformation, and biotechnology. At the beginning of the century, the college was renamed to better focus on the richness of bioresources and bio-variety. The College will continue to play a leading role in promoting sustainable agricultural development in Taiwan and Asia.