Scientific-research and commercial activities of the Department are organized in three units:

• Plant protection laboratory
• Seed testing laboratory
• Biotechnology laboratory

Main activity of Plant protection laboratory is identification of plant disease agents (fungi, bacteria, phytoplasmas and important viruses) in plants, plant parts and plant products. The Laboratory is in step with latest trends in plant protection and uses conventional as well as modern molecular methods for plant disease agents identification.

Seed testing laboratory of Agricultural Institute of Republic of Srpska is founded in 1947, the same year as the Institute was founded. Through its history the Laboratory was part of other departments or existed independantly as Department of seed testing. Seed testing laboratory has been part of Department of plant protection, seed testing and biotechnology since 2005.

From the same year the Laboratory is again member of ISTA (International Seed Testing Association). Activities of Laboratory are done according to ISTA standard procedures and these procedures are critical in international seed trade.

Modern equipment and competent personnel enable complete, equable and indifferent seed quality analyses.

Department is being continuously developed, and it is in step with development of new technologies and introduces new technologies. As a part of this Department also has Biotechnology laboratory. This laboratory does analyses of GMO presence in plants, plant parts and plant products, food and feed, as well as seed.

The Laboratory is equiped according to standards, has modern eqipment and educated personnel.

There are 10 people employed at the Department, out of which one has doctor’s degree, two are PhD students, four are MSc students, two are agricultural technicians and there is one administrative worker.