Swansea University and Swansea University-based company Bionema Ltd are to host the inaugural Biopesticide Summit next year to address the pressing need to develop alternatives to chemical pesticides.

The recent banning of chemical pesticides by the EU and Environmental Protection Agency suggests there are significant risks to food security, human health and the environment.

The Biopesticide Summit 2019 will focus on developing and introducing innovative and alternative biocontrol solutions that will help protect the food chain in a controlled but timely manner.

Biopesticides are the natural alternative to toxic chemicals, such as plants, bacteria, fungi and minerals, for the control of insect pests which attack food and other crops of all kinds.

The global biopesticides market was worth approximately $3.36bn in 2016 and is projected to reach $8.82bn by 2022, at a CAGR of 17.4% from 2016 to 2022. Despite significant growth in the biocontrol industry, there are major limitations with current biopesticide solutions. There is an urgent need to develop novel products and application technologies to not only fill the gaps in the market due to pesticide removal but also to anticipate future requirements as insects develop resistance to currently used insecticides. In addition, there is increasing consumer led demand for growers to reduce the use of chemical pesticides in crop production and to grow fruit and vegetables with reduced detectable residues.

The Biopesticide Summit 2019 will bring together scientists, researchers, key industry stakeholders, government organisations, investors, policy makers and integrated pest management practitioners to discuss the challenges faced and the future opportunities. The summit will also provide insights from end use markets giving updates on product performance in different sectors.

The Summit will:

• Highlight the global challenges facing growers and regulators currently and in the near future
• Bring together academia, industry and investors to commercialise novel innovations
• Examine new tools and methods being used to accelerate discovery of new biopesticides
• Hear about innovative technologies and formulation application strategies

Dr Minshad A Ansari, Founder and CEO of Bionema, said “This Summit is the first event of its kind to bridge the gap between academia, industry and regulators in a bid to introduce innovation and new products to meet the growing demands for safe, residue-free crops. Bionema, a leading technology developer is pleased to sponsor the Summit.”

Professor Richard B Davies, Swansea University’s Vice-Chancellor, said “Swansea University, a leading bioscience collaborator, and a Top 30 UK University, is pleased to be hosting this meeting which will create opportunities for colleagues to develop strategic collaborations, to accelerate commercialisation of new bio-control products and to support the uptake of new pest control strategies which contribute to improving human health and creating a safer environment.”

The programme, which will run for two consecutive days, will see a number of keynote speakers from academia, government organisations, biocontrol industry, policy makers and investors. International speakers are confirmed from the biocontrol industry, funding agencies, trade bodies, government and academia.