Symposium explores the future of plant protection

1 December 2015

Symposium explores the future of plant protection and biosecurity

Leading New Zealand scientists met at Lincoln University last week to discuss research that will strengthen New Zealand’s agriculture sector and help protect the environment.

The symposium, organised by the Bio-Protection Research Centre, brought together experts from across the country to share their vision for tackling current and future threats from plant diseases, insect pests and weeds.

“We have united some of New Zealand’s best research minds in innovative and integrated research projects,” says Centre Director Professor Travis Glare. “The government recognises the importance of this work for our primary sector, environment and society and we are now funded until 2020.”

The symposium focused on the latest research into natural, sustainable methods to protect plants. These methods take advantage of beneficial microbes, which are already present in the environment. Understanding how these microbes work is essential, and will help to identify the best new pest, disease and weed treatments and management strategies, explains Professor Glare.

The research is already yielding some promising results, with new strategies being developed to combat economically important insect pests, such as grass grub, porina, black beetle and diamondback moth, and diseases, such as Psa and kauri dieback.

In addition to working on known threats to our farmed and native ecosystems, the researchers are also using the latest computer modelling techniques to predict the arrival, spread and impact of future invasive species.

“Changes in the agricultural landscape, climate, and international trade and travel all influence the complex interaction networks between plants, insects and microbes in our environment. One of the key aims of these projects is to help us prepare for future pest and disease challenges,” says Professor Glare.

Melanie Mark-Shadbolt, a keynote speaker at the symposium, highlighted the importance of this research to Māori and explained how Māori knowledge (matauranga) will be integrated throughout its research programmes.

“As kaitiaki, Māori are and have been for a very long time acutely aware of the interactions between the various plant and insect systems. We now need to understand how changes in our climate and trade will affect these systems and our role as protectors,” says Mark-Shadbolt.

Māori are the largest landowners in New Zealand and their efforts and involvement are vital for building a sustainable future for New Zealand’s agriculture and economy.

The symposium included 30 speakers from three Crown Research Institutes (AgResearch, Plant & Food Research and Scion) and five universities (Lincoln, Massey, Auckland, Canterbury and Otago).

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