Ad hoc meeting with COPA-COGECA and IBMA on Biocontrol

On 10 December 2021, representatives from EFSA’s PREV and ENCO Units met with registered stakeholder and farmers’ association COPA-COGECA and the International Biocontrol Manufacturing Association (IBMA) to discuss the topic of biocontrol.

The ad hoc meeting provided the opportunity for an exchange of views around expertise to assess new microbial active substances. Discussions touched upon the activities EFSA is carrying out in cooperation with other food safety ecosystem partners to strengthen its scientific capacity.

IBMA and COPA-COGECA highlighted the relevance of biocontrol as a tool to help achieving the targets on halving the use of pesticides set in the Farm to Fork Strategy.

EFSA is open to strengthen its scientific expertise to continue to ensure a high-quality risk assessment of these products and considers input and contributions from any stakeholders, in line with the regulatory framework and engagement windows foreseen in the risk assessment phase.