Companies talk about it

 

 

Charlotte CENIER

Biodiversity and Biosolution Consultant

Agrosolution

 

Society's expectations for change in agriculture are high. Consumer demands and regulatory obligations are driving the farming industry to find new production methods that are more respectful of the  environment and biodiversity. Biocontrol represents a new method of crop protection but, like any newmethod, it requires a great deal of developement and support. The solutions are multiple: the use of macro-organisms, micro-organisms, natural substances or chemical mediators, but many of them are not yet operational.  In addition, the use of these solutions involves more complex mechanisms of action and efficacy conditions than conventional active ingredients.

 

These products raise many questions:

• How do they work?
• Which indicators should be monitored and which ratings should be carried out to assess their effectiveness?
• What biotic and abiotic factors will determine their effectiveness?
• What is their real impact on the environment, user and consumer health, biodiversity?

Apart from the use of products, the use of natural mechanisms such as allelopathic activity of certain plants, interspecific competition or natural regulation by crop auxiliaries are all biocontrol methods to be developed and better understood. The expectations of farmers are there for every high with regard to research, suppliers, technical institutes and distributors, on the one hand to broaden the range of solutions available, which are still too few at the moment, and on the other hand to support them in the use of these new pratices and solutions.

In this context, the work of SFR QUASAV (Federative Research Structure "Plant Health and Quality") finds its full meaning. In order to meet field expectations and acceleta the availability of these new pratices and solutions, it is essentiel that research and companies cooperate.