Knowledge for a sustainable world

Elizabeth Millar, Gillian Summers, Richard J Hopkins

Calling all farmers, growers, researchers, manufacturers and suppliers: with growing pressure to reduce reliance on chemical pesticides, now is the time to discover the latest advances in Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and biopesticide technology. Attend the free Biopesticides Event at the University of Greenwich, London, on 20th April where you can listen to and meet specialists from across the sector.

Sign up to the event here.

This is the 5th annual event in the successful series, which has been growing alongside a burgeoning global biopesticide market, predicted to exceed USD 6 billion by 2020. The biopesticide market is reportedly growing at a faster rate than the conventional crop protection industry, as stakeholders become aware of the benefits: biopesticides are environmentally friendly, biodegradable, and can be cheaper and more effective than chemical pesticides.

The annual Biopesticide Event has charted the rise of the sector, with previous years focussing on:field poppy 360673 Pixabay 750

2013: Biopesticides – the next big growth in the agricultural sector
2014: Making Integrated Pest Management work for farmers and growers
2015: Where is Integrated Pest Management in Europe?
2016: Minimising the environmental consequences of Biopesticide use

This year’s event will look at exactly how biopesticide technology and IPM can be developed and integrated further. The event serves as a forum where delegates can network and establish links with other players in the sector, to identify gaps, barriers and seize opportunities to collaborate.

 This year’s keynote speakers and topics include:

  • Philip C. Stevenson, Professor of Plant Chemistry, NRI, University of Greenwich and Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew – Plants as pesticides: from local uses to global perspectives
  • Mick Hamer, Syngenta Fellow in Environmental Safety, Syngenta – Biopesticides: Safety and regulations
  • Metodi Naydenov, Business Adviser, Enterprise Europe Network, University of Greenwich – Enterprise Europe Network: how it supports innovative green business
  • Dr Liliya Serazetdinova, Knowledge Transfer Manager, Agri-Food, Innovate UK – Help Innovate UK fund your innovation

Terrestris S Arnold 750 1As in previous years, the day will include a mixture of plenary presentations, several shorter ‘pitch’ presentations from researchers and technology companies, and a ‘brokerage’ session where participants can take part in 1:1 pre-planned meetings aimed at future collaborations.

The event is organised by Enterprise Europe Network (EEN), the European Centre for Integrated Pest Management (EUCIPM, based at NRI, University of Greenwich), Innovate UK and the Agrisciences Group of SCI. The team look forward to reuniting the IPM and biopesticide technology community and welcoming new members to the forum at the 5th Annual Event. Sign up today!

Register for the event | 2017 full programme | Further details: 2016 event

About the organisers
Enterprise Europe Network is an EU-funded initiative that helps small and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) make the most of business opportunities across Europe and other network partner countries, boosting innovation and productivity through the application of new ideas and technologies, participation in research projects and through increased business-to-business collaboration.

EUCIPM: the European Centre for Integrated Pest Management is led by natural and social scientists of the Natural Resources Institute (NRI) of the University of Greenwich, in association with the Hutton IPM Centre at the James Hutton Institute, and in collaboration with universities, research institutes and industrial partners in the UK and abroad. They aim to provide concerted application of natural and social sciences to reduce the losses caused by pests and diseases.

Innovate UK: Innovate UK is the UK's innovation agency, working with people, companies and partner organisations to find and drive the science and technology innovations that will grow the UK economy. With a strong business focus, they drive growth by working with companies to de-risk, enable and support innovation.

Agrisciences Group of SCI: The agrisciences group of science and business forum, SCI, covers the production, protection and utilisation of crops for food and non-food products. The group is a unique multidisciplinary network involved in all aspects of food security and the bioeconomy. They aim to cover contemporary agricultural science and agribusiness interests.