Noting the highly variable levels of IPM uptake across Europe, the authors identify the stakeholders who can help boost IPM use and the actions they should take to achieve this. For example, in the policy field, action is required to ensure crop-specific guidelines are developed in all Member States rather than the voluntary approach currently applied, and the development of biocontrols needs a more nurturing policy framework.

The authors, many of them very familiar to users of this website, also explore what steps stakeholders in research and knowledge transfer can take (more research on the economic aspects of IPM uptake and greater educational efforts, for example), the importance of demonstration farms and the role retail chains can play. Finally, the authors address the impact consumers can have on IPM.

The authors conclude that one of the key steps in boosting IPM uptake will be the development of simple and easily applicable tools or indicators to measure the rate of IPM adoption in the EU, thereby further helping to increase the confidence of consumers and retailers in IPM. 

Taken from: Jay Ram Lamichhane, Birol Akbas, Claus Bo Andreasen, Wilma Arendse, Sylvia Bluemel, Silke Dachbrodt-Saaydeh, Annika Fuchs, Jean-Pierre Jansen, Jozsef Kiss, Per Kudsk, Jean-Claude Malet, Alberto Masci, Anabel de la Peña, Astrid S.T. Willener & Antoine Messéan (2018): A call for stakeholders to boost integrated pest management in Europe: a vision based on the three-year European research area network project, International Journal of Pest Management, DOI: 10.1080/09670874.2018.1435924

For more information:

• Read the article online (subscription or payment required)
• Visit the ERA-Net C-IPM website