Community of Innovators: Sustainable Crop Protection
A community of innovators leading the way towards a sustainable, food-secure future
In the third part of our 'Community of Innovators' blog series, we're looking at how Warwick researchers are evolving integrated approaches for sustainable crop protection in the context of a changing climate.
Successful and sustainable crop protection for UK growers
Integrated pest management (IPM) is a sustainable approach to crop protection. IPM is about recognising that no single solution is a silver bullet, and complementary approaches build greater resilience into cropping systems. Warwick continues to be a key pioneer in the development of IPM solutions for growers in the UK and around the world.
Prof. Rosemary Collier, OBE, and her team work with growers, grower associations, and other industry bodies. She is exploring companion planting as a way of reducing pest damage on crops and highlights the importance of approaches like intercropping and strip farming for supporting natural pest control ecologies. She also champions research into the use of partial genetic resistance in combination with other tools such as biological agents, which together provide control - where individually they might not - and can support durable resistance, where the breakdown of resistance mechanisms in crop cultivars is slowed or prevented.
The long-term vision is for agriculture without harsh chemical pesticides, but growers need effective crop protection throughout the journey. Biological agents are part of both the interim and final solution, functioning as part of an integrated approach rather than as direct replacements for chemical pesticides. At Warwick, Dr Dave Chandler鈥檚 work investigates the potential and safe use of fungal biopesticides to manage insect pests.
Similarly, Prof. John Clarkson鈥檚 team are working with industry to explore biocontrol solutions to address the corm rot disease complex which affects saffron growers in England. Further, Dr Mojgan Rabiey uses highly selective bacteriophages to target bacterial diseases, which otherwise pose significant challenges for safe control.
Leadership in IPM strategies at Warwick works alongside research into crop genetic resistance and pest/disease surveillance technologies to deliver a diversity of complementary management strategies, helping growers respond to changing field pressures. Delivering the vision of a post-chemical era needs continued research into these alternative solutions for growers in the UK and overseas.
