Biological crop protection alternatives need to be more accessible to growers and farmers worldwide. To ensure better access to sustainable alternatives, authorization processes need to be eased up and accelerated. This was the message conveyed to the US Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny Perdue, at a meeting with four select companies in the Netherlands last week.
Koppert Biological System’s Director of Horticulture, René Ruiter, spoke with the American Secretary of Agriculture at a meeting hosted by Koppert Cress. Perdue is on a visit to the European Union to get to know the European Commission. In his address, René Ruiter informed him about the application of natural solutions for controlling pests and diseases in agricultural and horticultural crops.
‘The conversation with the US Secretary of Agriculture was of great value to us and an important step towards cooperation with the local government with the aim of easing the authorization processes of sustainable products for the American market,’ René Ruiter reported. Koppert’s message for the US Secretary of Agriculture was clear: ´We need your help with registration processes, so that new and sustainable alternatives become more accessible to growers and farmers. Industry and regulatory authorities must work together to ensure the availability of new and safe technology for horticulture and agriculture.’
The United States is one of Koppert Biological Systems’ largest markets, which makes streamlining laws and regulations for biocontrol even more important.
