China and CABI have been successfully collaborating for decades, with China being an important Member Country of CABI since 1995. In 2019, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) of China and CABI jointly started operating the European Laboratory at CABI’s centre in Switzerland.
The MARA China-CABI European Laboratory is affiliated with the MARA China-CABI Joint Laboratory for Biosafety, established in 2008, in Beijing at the Institute of Plant Protection (IPP) of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS).
It aims to support collaboration by facilitating capacity building and exchanges of experts, providing a link between East Asia, Switzerland and other European countries. CABI and MARA scientists engage in research and development in agricultural science that sustains local and global influence, while helping to address critical challenges and achieve a greater reach of science-based solutions.
What does the MARA China-CABI European Laboratory offer?
- Effective collaboration on the prevention, containment, as well as biological and integrated management of invasive pest species
- Scientific and technological exchange and capacity building, including exchanges of experts, particularly young scientists
- Joint organization of symposia and conferences
- Cooperation with national or international agricultural bodies
Highlights and successes
- Secondments each year of one or more young scientists from China to the European Laboratory for a period of 3-4 months
- Advances in biosafety assessments on the biological control of invasive species, for example:
- the South American-origin invasive aquatic weed, parott's feather, in Europe and China using Lysathia cilliersae and Phytobius vestitus herbivores
- the Asian-origin box tree moth in Europe
- the American-origin fall armyworm with Trichogramma and other parasitoids
- A better understanding of the potential spread of invasive species caused by climate change
- Joint publications, for example:
The team and key contacts
The team consists of highly-skilled technical and international collaboration experts, including two Co-directors and two Secretaries.
Co-director of MARA CABI European Laboratory
CABI in Switzerland
Hariet Hinz, Global Director, Invasive Species
Co-director of MARA CABI European Laboratory
IPPCAAS in China
Jie Zhang, Professor/Deputy Director General
Co-secretary of MARA CABI European Laboratory
IPPCAAS in China
Fang Tian, Associate Professor/ Deputy Director, Division of Domestic and International Cooperation
Co-secretary of MARA CABI European Laboratory
CABI in Switzerland
Stefan Toepfer, Crop Health Advisor
Partners
The MARA China-CABI European Laboratory is linked to:
Teams at CABI
Chinese partners
- MARA China-CABI Joint Laboratory for Biosafety at IPPCAAS in Beijing
- Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (IPPCAAS)
- Shandong Academy of Sciences, and MARA-CABI subcenter
- Anhui Academy of Sciences, and MARA-CABI subcenter
- Grassland Research Institute, and MARA-CABI subcenter
- Yunan Agricultural University, and MARA-CABI subcenter
- and many others
Related Projects
Fighting the yellow-legged Asian hornet in Switzerland
The yellow-legged Asian hornet, Vespa velutina nigrithorax, was first detected in central Europe in 2004 and has since established in many countries on the continent. This hornet is a predator of honey bees and other insects, threatening honey production, pollination services and biodiversity. With Switzerland facing the imminent invasion by the hornet, CABI was commissioned by the Swiss government to help with the preparation for the threat and the control of the first arrivals. This project aims to establish a monitoring system for the early detection of the Asian hornet, determine control strategies and use climate modelling to predict where in Switzerland the insect might settle.
Proactive biocontrol of Spotted Lanternfly
The spotted lanternfly is an Asian polyphagous pest that feeds on more than 70 plants by sucking the sap out of from leaves, stems and trunks. It was found in Pennsylvania in 2014 and has since expanded its geographical distribution. The damage caused by the pest, its sugary excrement and sooty mold has been devastating for the Pennsylvania wine industry – reportedly causing a 90% grape loss.
Improving the livelihoods of smallholder maize farmers around the Mekong
After rice, maize is the most important crop in the Mekong Delta. Insects including the Asian corn borer are a major threat to production. Fear of crop losses, together with a lack of alternative measures, can result in overuse of pesticides – posing health risks to farmers, consumers and the agro-ecosystem. This project will establish local production of an affordable biological control agent, the parasitic wasp trichogramma, which kills the eggs of maize pests.
