Crop health

By sharing science-based knowledge about crop health, CABI helps smallholder farmers to grow more and lose less, increase their incomes and improve their livelihoods

The challenge

With global challenges like climate change making it increasingly difficult for smallholder farmers living in poor rural communities to grow and sell food, sharing knowledge about crop health has never been more important.

The world’s 800 million smallholder farmers produce most of the world’s food, but the majority live in poor and vulnerable rural communities where they often lack access to science-based information about crop health.

Farmer with plant doctor advising on apple crop

Family in field with plant doctor giving advice

Providing solutions

Working with our donors and partners, we help share knowledge about integrated crop management and plant health with smallholder farmers to help them grow more and lose less.

For example, the CABI-led Plantwise programme improves farmers’ yields and incomes while reducing the use of toxic pesticides. Through the programme, we also help countries improve their plant health systems, so that they can prevent and manage pest outbreaks more effectively.

We have successfully increased plant health knowledge and helped farmers across the world grow healthier crops using natural solutions such as biopesticides and biological control of crop pests, helping them to use fewer chemical pesticides and implement more agricultural best practice.

Our crop health expertise in more detail

The CABI-led PlantwisePlus programme increases food security and improves rural livelihoods by reducing crop losses. Since its launch, Plantwise has supported over 30 million smallholder farmers around the world with crop and plant health knowledge.

We work with donors and partners to deliver projects in integrated crop management (ICM), combining a variety of practices in, for example, pest and soil health management, helping farmers to grow better crops.

Access to healthy seeds and soil is essential for smallholder farmers in developing countries. We help make high-quality seeds available and share information about organic fertilisers and good soil health practices or Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM).

The CABI-led Plantwise programme has reached over 30 million smallholder farmers across the world, sharing the knowledge they need to lose less of what they grow to crop pests and diseases

Find out more

Key contact

For more information and enquiries about our expertise in crop health, please get in touch.

CABI In Switzerland

Ulrich Kuhlmann

Executive Director, Global Operations

T: +41 (0) 32 4214882 E: u.kuhlmann@cabi.org

Stories of impact

Read about the variety of work CABI delivers, and the difference we make

Project boosts Uganda’s horticultural trade

Vegetable project in Pakistan helps woman farmer build confidence and boost her income

PlantwisePlus Knowledge Bank helps countries like Malawi prepare for crop health threats

Related Projects

Explore our recent projects from around the world

Generative AI for Agriculture Advisory

Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) technology offers enormous potential by addressing information asymmetries and rapidly advancing research. In the agriculture sector, it can localize digital advisory messages and increase the accessibility of such messages to reduce the digital divide compared to traditional, non-AI communication methods. Using natural language processing (NLP) and large language models (LLMs) offers new potential to disseminate complex scientific information more widely, in local dialects and through various formats, transforming accessibility. This project will explore the potential to deliver advisories based on CABI’s highly curated and expert-validated resources to plant doctors and other agriculture advisors via Generative AI chatbot technology, and the data governance and licensing necessary to ensure the quality of such advisories.

Wheat Blast: Earth observation and climate forecasts for risk management

Wheat Blast (Magnaporthe oryzae Triticum or ‘MOT’) is a plant disease of global concern, threatening crop production and biosecurity. Known to favour humid, warmer climates, the disease is a severe problem in Bangladesh and South America. However, the consequences of climate change pose the risk of the disease infecting other wheat-growing areas. Coupled with its ability to spread rapidly through the air and seeds, Wheat Blast’s devastating effects and limited control options are leading to heavy yield losses and it is now a threat to global food security. This project brings together a project consortium, formed of experts in Earth observation, remote sensing, pest and disease modelling, datasets and information dissemination to produce Wheat Blast risk maps and actionable advice as part of a framework. The framework will be used by key stakeholders as part of a targeted management approach to the disease.

EU-China joint action to increase the development and adoption of IPM tools

The persistent threat of invasive agricultural pests and their chronic re-emergence underlines the importance of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) tools and their implementation. Pest management typically relies largely on chemical pesticides, increasing the risks to humans and wildlife. Despite European Union and Chinese policies promoting the use of IPM, widespread adoption by farmers is limited. This project will utilize existing knowledge and techniques to adapt and optimize future IPM tools and practices. The project will further develop high-potential IPM tools and design cost-effective, environmentally safe IPM packages for economically important crops. Together with partners, CABI will lead the development of a web-based IPM tool performance demonstrator. CABI will also make valuable contributions to the development and efficacy of IPM tools against fall armyworm and develop a biocontrol agent for common ragweed.

More Projects