b'IPB: Efficacy of biocontrol is well proven with many farmers world-wide satisfied and relying on biocontrol to farm profitably. And bio-control is also an enabler for sustainable farming, to allow farmers to start the transition towards a more agroecological approach or what we refer to as a biology first approach. The idea is that farmers should work with nature, and with the ecosystems. This is based on agronomic practices including landscape features, crop rotation and resistant varieties. When combined with monitoring and mechanical and physical control it can minimize the need for chemical control. In the programmes sometimes you can replace chemical control directly by biological control, but most of the time a farmer will need to reassess his approach, adapting the rotation, varieties or timings of the operation, taking a more holistic approach working with nature.ES: CAN YOU SHARE SOME BIOCONTROL SUCCESS STORIES?IPB: Nowadays, biological control is widely used in greenhouses,Jennifer Lewis Isabelle Pinzauti Babrzyskiand frequently used outdoors in specialty crops such as orchards, vegetables and vines. Increasingly we have successful examples of biological control used in arable crops which is a more challenging environment of course, because it is a monoculture. But still a lot of farmers are already using it successfully. For instance, there is the example of a French farmer who uses biological control in his arable crops wheat, barley, sugar beet, maize. He is using several biocontrol solutions, and he has been able to keep the same yield, while reducing pesticide costs. The labourFarmers should work with nature,costs increased a bit to apply the products manually, but this can inand with the ecosystems.turn also be reduced by the use of drones.Another example is the use of pheromones to control the stripedIsabelle Pinzauti Babrzyskirice stem borer in rice in a nature reserve in Spain. Since 2006 this pest has been fully controlled by disrupting its mating. This is done in an area of over 16,000 ha. and this has avoided the use of 58,000 liters of synthetic insecticides each year. The control of the pest has allowed the farmer to continue with their rice cultivation in an area which has been declared a natural reserve. In addition, it is also important for tourism in the region.Also, in the Czech Republic there has been some good success the use of the Cydia pomonella granulose virus (CpGV) to control the codling moth in apple. For use in baby food, it is important to have residue free apple production. It turns out that CpGV is highly effective and selective, without any non-target effects, nor rapid pest resistance. So, this makes the use of the granulose virus an indis-pensable tool in fighting this pest. The yield is a bit lower, but the financial reliability and the income stabilization is guaranteed. So, he was able to keep the high value market segment of baby food.More examples of successful IPM programmes with Biocontrol in Action are available at: www.ibmabiocontrolsuccess.org ES: WHAT IS IBMAS POSITION ON THE EUS GREEN DEAL?JL: We fully support the objectives of the Green Deal, which are key to green industries like the biocontrol industry. In particular, we sup-port the transition to more agroecological practices, which require alternatives such as biological control. In our view it is not only agriculture that needs to be sustainable, but the whole food system.ES: THE PROPOSAL FOR THE REVISION OF THE SUSTAINABLE USE DIRECTIVE (SUD) IS ON THE TABLE. WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THE CURRENT PROPOSAL?IPB: First of all, IBMA fully supports the goal of the SUD of achieving the sustainable use of pesticides by promoting the use of integrated pest management (IPM). But to be effective, there must be mandatory full implementation of IPM based on a holisticSeveral hundred species of fungi are classified as biocontrol agent.hierarchical approach.EUROPEAN-SEED.COMIEUROPEAN SEED I 11'