The CROPSAFE team are delighted to share the achievement of our first major technical milestone – preparation, lab testing, and down selection of our initial bioactive library to take forward the most promising compounds into phase 2 of our trials. we’re working towards development of effective, bio-based pest control as alternatives to the conventional pesticide products used by European farmers. This was a multi-partner activity bringing together:

• our three biorefinery partners (Borregaard, Alginor and Kaffe Bueno)
• our biotech engineers at IQS
• our plant/pest experts at University of Alicante, Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection at CNR, and The James Hutton Institute
• and our safety and sustainability specialists at Leitat

We started with a library of 51 compounds and extracts, prepared on a multi-gram scale, which have been tested against banana weevil, Fusarium fungus, root knot- and potato cyst nematodes using methods designed to understand their mode of action against these pests and diseases. We’ve now selected 24 of the highest activity compounds to take forward into scale-up, formulation, and greenhouse trials – the choices were tailored for each pest, so on average we’ll be testing around 8 candidates per pest/disease in the next stage of research. You can find more information about our project roadmap and what happens next on our About page.

Alongside the phase 2 testing, we’re increasing the bioactive preparation scale to make kilogram quantities, conducting safety testing and environmental assessments, and looking at the effect of the bioactives on pest-treated potted plants under controlled conditions. We expect to complete this next phase of work in early 2027.

It truly takes a team to deliver all the materials and information necessary to reach this point and then work together to assess the data and reach an informed decision on our future research. Congratulations to all involved! We’re looking forward to getting together in June to celebrate this success and build our future testing plans.

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