A £4.2m veterinary laboratory is to be established at Aberystwyth University.

The state-of-the-art facility will develop tests and vaccines for animal-borne diseases that lead to livestock loss and transmit to humans.

The VET Hub 1 project, unveiled at the Royal Welsh Show, has received £3m from the European Regional Development Fund and further £650,000 from the Centre of Innovation Excellence in Livestock.

Speaking at the launch, Wales’s cabinet secretary for environment and rural affairs, Lesley Griffiths, said the new facility would benefit the farming industry in Wales and the wider world.

“This EU-backed investment will help tackle some of the great challenges of our time, food security, climate change as well as the Welsh Government and Aberystwyth University’s long term focus on supporting animal health and veterinary science,’’ she said.

“It will also unlock a range of opportunities over the coming years for businesses throughout the livestock supply chain, and in associated industries which will benefit from the new facility and collaborative research opportunities leading to the development of new products and services for the global market.”

Meanwhile, the vice-chancellor of Aberystwyth University, Professor Elizabeth Treasure, revealed that discussions with the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) on an education exchange were progressing.

Veterinary science students at Aberystwyth will in future spend some of their time studying at the RVC whilst vet students from the RVC will undergo some of their training, specifically large animal medicine, at Aberystwyth.

It is hoped that the programme will increase the number of professionals in veterinary medicine in Wales.