The Czech Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) is a specialized and professional scientific agricultural institution operating in the Czech Republic. It is a scientific advisory body to the Minister of Agriculture of the Czech Republic and was founded as a para-governmental organization of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic on January 1st 1993 - after the division of the CSFR.
    CAAS claims to the tradition and continues in the activities of former Czechoslovak Academy of Agriculture, which was founded by the edict of the Ministry of Agriculture on November 29th 1924 and the Ministry of Home Affairs of Czechoslovakia on December 5th 1924 as the central scientific agricultural institution supporting scholarly work, popularization and use of scientific knowledge in practice.
    CAAS concentrates scientific workers in agricultural research, development and education as well as scientists and public instructors merit in the improvement of agriculture. It represents Czech research and academic communities inside the Czech Republic, as well as abroad.
    According to its Founding document, CAAS regards as agricultural research specific research activities in natural, technical, economical and social sciences, concerning agricultural and forestry production, manufacturing agricultural and forestry products and raw materials, human nutrition and quality of food products, plant and animal health protection, the use and protection of basic natural resources including soil and water, general landscape protection and rural development, and general public education. In this regard its activities span the purview of several ministries and individual scientific disciplines.
    The main purpose of the CAAS is to improve the scientific level of research activities and education in the fields of its interest, to insure systematic development and to popularize effectively obtained scientific knowledge. CAAS activities are maintained by its Departments, Board of Directors, a Secretary General and a secretariat.

CAAS major tasks are set out below:

• 1. Its role as scientific advisory body to the Minister of Agriculture of CR is fulfilled by forming strategies, structure and setting out priorities of agricultural research, preparation of materials, developing and evaluation of agricultural research programs and public tenders. This role is exclusive to the CAAS. Besides this task the CAAS fulfils other tasks according to the requests of the Minister of Agriculture.
• Activities in international scientific co-operation in European and global contexts.
• Ensuring the understanding and popularization of agricultural science and agricultural science and research activities in the fields and contributes to the implementation of the results.
• CAAS is responsible for the professional supervision and scientific content of agricultural scientific journals issued in co-operation with the CAAS.

Members of CAAS on divided into the following Departments - the basic organization units of CAAS:

 

1.	Department of Plant Production	100 members
2.	Department of Plant Protection	72 members
3.	Department of Animal Production	74 members
4.	Department of Veterinary Medicine	33 members
5.	Department of Agricultural Engineering, Energy and Construction	54 members
6.	Department of Food Technology and Technique	28 members
7.	Department of Human Nutrition and Food Quality	48 members
8.	Department of Economy, management, Sociology and IT	43 members
9.	Department of Forestry	41 members
10.	Department of Soil Science	35 members
11.	Department of Water Management	71 members

Honorary members: 107

CAAS has at present 599 members