The event will be held in Dijon (France) on 02&03 June 2022.
Current crop protection in EU agriculture heavily relies on chemical pesticides to control weeds, pests and pathogens. European authorities, consumers and citizens are calling for a drastic reduction in the use and impact of chemical pesticides. The European Green Deal has set new targets and defined a roadmap with multiple strategies, including Farm to Fork and Biodiversity 2030. Ambitious targets have been set for agriculture and food, namely the goal of reducing by 50% the use and risk of chemical pesticides, as well as the use of more hazardous pesticides, by 2030.
This ambitious objective will require an in-depth change with new approaches based on prophylaxis, agroecology and the commitments of the sectors, but also major breakthroughs in the conception of new agricultural systems where crop protection does not rely only on the application of chemical pesticides. French and European research is clearly in line with this ambition with major paradigm shifts and disruptive research strategies, which should lead to such breakthrough innovations.