The WBF has mustered its industry network to lobby the UK’s HSE on regulatory reform for biopesticides, with the publication of an open letter in this month’s official
journal of the Society of Chemical Industry (SCI)
Wednesday 26 th January 2022 – The World BioProtection Forum (WBF), a non-profit organisation that connects stakeholders to ensure the successful development and commercialisation of biocontrol products, has taken the sector initiative to garner support from 30 leaders representing both academia and the bioprotection industry, who have together co-signed an open letter to the UK’s Health & Safety Executive (HSE).
“On behalf of the network and supporters of the World BioProtection Forum (WBF), we call today upon regulators at the UK’s HSE to urgently review and reform the process for new bioprotection products in the UK (micro-organisms, semiochemicals and botanicals),” they write.
“The current process is complex and expensive, reflecting an historical error in evaluating biological products alongside conventional synthetic pesticides (under the EU regulatory system). This has led to a transfer of inappropriate evaluation requirements that were originally intended for synthetic products.”
The WBF and its broad network of supporters across the world see a positive opportunity, now that the UK can formulate its own regulations post-Brexit. British regulators are well placed to help devise and implement positive, forward-looking reforms. There is huge opportunity to bring in changes that enable environmentally favourable bioprotection products to be brought to market more quickly – thereby ensuring business viability and enabling the benefits of this green industrial sector to be obtained. It is hoped that a better and more tailored system can combine the necessary rigours of regulatory testing with a more appropriate evaluation system that is better suited to biological products, rather than subjecting biologicals to an evaluation process designed for chemicals.
The spread of co-signatories includes representatives from commercial entities such as Bioline Agrosciences (UK), Bionema (UK), Bioworks (USA), BTU-Center (Ukraine), Chestnut Bio (USA), Croda Europe (UK), Ecolibrium Biologicals (New Zealand), Eden Research (UK), e-nema (Germany), Farma-Chem (Greece), FluxTech (Romania), Gowan Company (USA), Lisk & Jones (UK), International Pheromone Systems (UK), Marrone Bio Innovations (USA), Koppert Biological Systems (The Netherlands), Oro Agri (The Netherlands), Russell Bio Solutions (UK), Russell IPM (UK) and Valto (The Netherlands), as well as several reputative academic institutions and non-profit organisations. Together, these organisations offer a powerful representation of the world bioprotection industry, and they call on the UK Government to take advantage of a unique opportunity to meaningfully support AgriTech as an economically and environmentally valuable sector.
The open letter was published in this month’s edition of Chemistry & Industry: the official journal of the eminent Society of Chemical Industry (SCI). You can read the full letter at:
https://www.soci.org/chemistry-and-industry/cni-data/2022/1/biopesticides-reform-call
If you would like to learn more about the WBF and its campaign for regulatory reform in the UK, which will provide a significant test case for other campaigns for regulatory reform in other countries (including the EU), visit: https://www.worldbioprotectionforum.com/#
About the World BioProtection Forum:
The Annual World BioProtection Summit is the annual meeting of the World BioProtection Forum and its members. The AWBSA plays a key role in achieving the mission of the WBF, which is to bridge the gap between academia and industry and to ensure the successful development and commercialisation of bioprotection (formerly known as biopesticide) products.
Biological solutions for the control of pests and diseases present a fast-growing segment of AgriTech, and offer a sustainable alternative to chemical pesticides. This is particularly important as more chemicals are being withdrawn from the market due to their toxicity, leaving growers helpless in the fight against a growing number of crop pests and diseases. The WBF is founded on the belief that, by creating the connections that allow individuals and companies to take biological technologies forward, the sector can successfully provide the solutions needed to fill the gaps left in the market by withdrawn toxic chemicals.
The WBF is a non-profit organisation for encouraging collaboration across the biocontrol industry and academia. It was founded in 2019 to facilitate the successful development and commercialisation of novel biological control products for agricultural pests and diseases. To join the WBF, or for more information about its activities and events, please visit
https://www.worldbioprotectionforum.com/
Media contact:
Dr Sarah Harding, Communication Consultant
sarah.harding@worldbioprotectionforum.com
