All the news

• European Conference on Crop Diversification
  

  The programme for the European Conference on Crop Diversification, which will run from September 18 through to September 21, 2019, in Budapest, Hungary, is now available. It is being organised by DiverIMPACTS (Diversification through Rotation, Intercropping, Multiple Cropping, Promoted with Actors and value-Chains towards Sustainability) and other projects targeting crop diversification.

• DiverIMPACTS video explores strip cropping
  

  The latest video from the DiverIMPACTS Horizon 2020 project explores the benefits of strip cultivation, focusing on the work of Wageningen University & Research (WUR) with Dutch farmers. Researchers are conducting “new large-scale strip trials to see if crop diversity can fulfil its promise of supporting a robust, plant-based food production system”.

• Yield losses estimated for key global crops
  

  A major study has been published estimating the impact of pests and diseases on five major food crops around the world. An international team, including scientists from France’s INRA (National Institute of Agricultural Research) and other institutions around the world, supported by the International Society for Plant Pathology (ISPP), spent more than a year compiling statistics on wheat, rice, maize, soy and potato. Their results have been published in Nature Ecology & Evolution.

• Agroscope underlines commitment to PPP reduction
  

  Agroscope, ENDURE’s Swiss partner, is stepping up its communication efforts in order to makes its research achievements in plant protection better known to agricultural practitioners. Agroscope is ‘giving its experts the floor’, beginning with an interview with Agroscope head Eva Reinhard, in which she explains what research is achieving and can still achieve.

• Report: Glyphosate use and alternatives
  

  INRA, France’s National Institute for Agricultural Research, has published the English version of an extensive report examining glyphosate use and alternatives in French agriculture. The report was drawn up in response to a request from the French government “for an analysis of glyphosate use, the identification of possible alternatives alongside their economic and organisational implications, and suggestions for supporting measures to facilitate the transition to glyphosate-free production systems”.

• Insects launches IPM special issue
  

  The journal Insects is launching a special issue addressing ‘Integrated Pest Management Strategies for Horticultural Crops’. The deadline for manuscript submissions is June 30, 2019.

• France unveils €30m research programme
  

  France has unveiled its €30 million ‘research priority programme’ to continue its drive towards reduced pesticide use. Called ‘Cultiver et Protéger Autrement’ (cultivating and protecting differently), the programme will focus on using agroecology, biocontrol and preventive measures to deliver high-performance, sustainable agriculture.

• Agroscope hosts potato symposium
  

  Agroscope, ENDURE’s Swiss partner, is hosting this September’s European Association for Potato Research’s pathology and pests section symposium, which will be focusing on ‘Reducing pesticide use while preserving potato productivity and profitability’

• Spotlight on glyphosate use
  

  ENDURE is to draw on its resources as a consortium of research and development organisations involved in the implementation of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) to shed light on the issue of glyphosate use in European agriculture. In particular, it will be seeking to identify the research strategies which could be most pertinent to the issue.

• 50 tools for crop diversification
  

  The DiverIMPACTS project has produced an inventory of 50 tools for crop diversification which are available for farmers and their advisers. It includes details such as the type of tool or method, expected impact, the level to which it applies, the recipients it is designed for, the training time required, cost and number of users.