The meeting will be addressing ‘Challenges in biocontrol: single strains versus synthetic consortia’. The organisers note: “During the conference we plan to address the important matters such as selection of biocontrol agents, their modes of actions and the lab to field transition, including formulation methods As a theme specific to this event, we would like to discuss the application of multiple strains versus single organisms in biological control, considering all benefits and difficulties associated with these approaches.”

The preliminary topics identified are:

• The use of synthetic microbial consortia in plant protection versus the use of single strains
• Strategies to develop microbial-based products for agriculture from a plan to a product
• Successful agents for biological and integrated control of plant diseases
• Mass production, formulation and the application of biological control agents
• Legal and social issues related to the use of microorganisms in agriculture
• Cooperation between industry and academia
• Microbe-microbe and plant-microbe interactions underlying biological control
• Methods to study complex interactions and ecological networks in agriculture
• The future of biocontrol - new ideas and concepts
• Ecotoxicology assessment regarding humans and animals
• Beyond cells - the use of natural products to fight plant diseases
• Biocontrol of emerging plant diseases
• What went wrong? Factors affecting the effectiveness of biological control agents

For more information:

• Visit the event website here
• Download the first circular:
  Gdansk first circular [pdf - 1.69 MB]