France

Since 2012, PHENOME-EMPHASIS has built a highly skilled and renowned distributed infrastructure allowing the study of collections of plant genotypes under precisely measured climatic scenario (drought, CO₂, heat…) and crop management practices (low input, biotic interactions, mixed crops) supporting agriculture resilience to climate change and agroecology transitions. It includes development and access to controlled (greenhouses and growth chambers) and semi-controlled (rain-out shelter) platforms, field sites, and omics facilities, all equipped with advanced imaging tools. Managed by one or more of our partners (the National research institute for Agriculture, food and environment INRAE, together with the extension services for annual crops Arvalis, for nitrogenous crops Terres Inovia and the variety testing office GEVES), platforms, biochemical and digital services are accessible to both internal and external users.  

PHENOME-EMPHASIS provides the following services: 

• Phenotyping platforms: Ten experimental nodes enable high-throughput analysis of plants and crops, with continuous monitoring of microclimates and automated imaging pipelines. 

• Vectors, imaging and traits: develops AI-driven methods based on different spectral ranges and borne by different vectors (incl. drones, phenomobiles, connected devices) to capture and process plant images to extract plant traits through in-house workflows. 

• Data: A broad scale of data management, storage and computing tools, adhering to FAIR principles are developed and implemented in the different Phenome-Emphasis nodes. These tools include an in-house developed information system, a data finder supporting large-scale data integration and sharing. This activity is shared with European partners within EMPHASIS. 

• High-throughput biochemistry: Facilities enable large-scale analysis of metabolites, enzyme activities, and biopolymers, handling up to one million samples annually. 

• Training: Courses target users, students, and staff in continuing education, with international sessions linked to European projects. 

• Partnerships and coordination: The infrastructure fosters collaboration, resource optimization, dissemination, and project development, supporting both internal and external initiatives. 

The challenges faced by agriculture (climate change, biodiversity losses, soil degradation etc…) are huge and urgent and no single country can pretend to provide solutions alone. Phenome-Emphasis therefore coordinates national and European projects supporting the development of joint services in Plant phenomics across Europe and serves as the French node of the European EMPHASIS infrastructures that supports and harmonizes activities of the different National nodes on plant phenomics in Europe, in particular those related to data management, sharing and use for modelling.  

PHENOME-EMPHASIS values conviviality to reinforce ties within the network and openness to all users and stakeholders. Events promoting expertise or internal meetings often combine scientific exchanges with local (agri)cultural experiences. The 2025 general meeting in Colmar, for example, included visits to the old town, cellars, and vineyards alongside working sessions.