Sustainable ways to reduce the use of pesticides in pome and stone fruit production

How can alternative methods reduce the use of pesticides in pome and stone fruits and support the productivity of the sector in a sustainable way? 

The Final report of this Focus Group has now been published.

Tasks: 

• Identify good practices to deal with pests and diseases in pome and stone fruits which may be adapted to different conditions, including prevention practices, early detection, diagnostics and monitoring.  
• Take stock of preventive agro-ecological strategies and solutions including current and forgotten methods as well as strategies of organic agriculture (indirect and direct measures) to further minimise the use of pesticides in pome and stone fruit production.  
• Make an inventory of IPM (Integrated Pest Management) strategies (including biological control) to combat pests and diseases in pome and stone fruits.  
• Compare these different management practices and strategies (agro-ecological practices and IPM), consider existing problems and opportunities, also bearing in mind practicability and costs. 
• Compile examples of ‘good practice’, i.e. a number of case studies, from farm level in particular, across different regions in Europe.  
• Identify needs from practice (farming sector) and possible gaps in knowledge on particular issues concerning the management of pests and diseases in pome and stone fruit production which may be solved by further research. 
• Propose priorities for relevant innovative actions / projects including practical ideas for EIP-AGRI Operational Groups. 

Results:

• Final report
• Factsheet
• Starting paper
• Minipaper: Precision Agriculture – An Enabler for Pesticide Use Reduction
• Minipaper: Towards a comprehensive approach to achieve pesticide reduction in fruit production systems
• Minipaper: Plant Genetic to contribute to pesticide reduction
• Minipaper: Innovative approaches for a sustainable future plant protection

Other information: 

• Presentations 1st meeting, 23-24 March 2022
  • Valentina Hazic, farmer-  Challenges from practice - Croatia
  • David Doll, farm manager - experiences from almonds, pome and stone fruits - Portugal
  • Sylvaine Simon, researcher -  Inspiration from an innovative circle orchard) - France
  • Peter Schweiger, (Global2000) - Demands from the market chain - Austria

Focus Group members:

EIP-AGRI related videos:

• AGRI challenge: sustainable pome and stone fruit

• AGRI challenge: biodiversity