The 2019 University Fund Wageningen (UFW) Research Award goes to Sumanth K. Mutte MSc, Dr. Hirotaka Kato, both at the Biochemistry group of Wageningen University & Research, led by prof. Dolf Weijers. In their joint paper, published in eLife, the researchers pioneered a new field in plant biology: evolutionary biochemistry. Both researchers received a certificate, a replica of the statuette ‘The Wageningen Tree’ and a sum of €2500.