The executive director of InnovPlantProtect (InPP), António Saraiva, took part in the conference “What are the challenges facing the national agroforestry sector over the next decade?”, which took place at the Escola Superior Agrária de Coimbra (ESAC) of the Polytechnic Institute of Coimbra last Tuesday, April 22.
The event, which brought together more than 150 participants and was organized by 17 national Competence Centres, discussed topics such as innovation, sustainability, soil conservation, monitoring cork oak forests and efficient agricultural management.
António Saraiva was part of the panel of commentators, whose speaker was Pedro Santos, Director General of CONSULAI, and moderated by Maria Custódia Correia, Coordinator of the AKIS Portugal Network. The opening session was attended by the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, José Manuel Fernandes, who announced the publication of the Ordinance of April 21 to open the Grant for Initiatives for the creation of Operational Groups (OG).
This initiative provides a total of 11 million euros for new GOs, with a maximum of 350,000 euros per project and eligible funding of 100%.
The GOs are considered crucial structures for transferring knowledge and strengthening the AKIS (Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation System).
Special thanks to the 17 Competence Centers for the opportunity to participate in this productive meeting!
Beyond strategy: The secret ingredient of innovation
On the path to success, organizations define strategies, plan each step, and invest in crucial resources such as the sale of services and products, project applications, the development of solid business plans, and the protection of intellectual property. However, there is an often-neglected element that is fundamental to the flourishing of innovation: serendipity. But what exactly is this mysterious force, and why is it so vital to advancing agriculture and so many other areas?
When chance opens doors: The power of unplanned discovery
Serendipity lies in the art of finding something valuable when looking for something else. It's the unintentional discoveries that arise from unexpected situations. Throughout history, some of the most transformative innovations have not been the result of a rigorous plan, but rather of a fortuitous encounter with the unknown. Although deliberate research and methodical experimentation are pillars of scientific and technological progress, openness to the unexpected proves to be a powerful catalyst. When researchers cultivate this openness, they often come across revelations that have the potential to revolutionize entire industries, transform technologies, and expand our understanding of the world around us.
A close look at the “error”: The genesis of an innovative biofungicide
Today, we unveil the surprising and inspiring story of Maria Miguel, a talented researcher from the InPP's New Biopesticides Department, whose insight transformed a fortuitous event into a discovery of inestimable value: a broad-spectrum biofungicide capable of combating Botrytis cinerea, the relentless fungus responsible for the devastating gray mold disease in tomato plants. This pathology represents one of the greatest phytosanitary challenges in tomato cultivation, especially when grown in greenhouses, causing significant losses to producers if not controlled in a timely manner.
From discard to discovery: An investigator's insight
The journey of this discovery began in a scenario familiar to any researcher: the observation of Petri dishes, used to grow cell or microorganism cultures. In Maria Miguel's Petri dishes, colonies of the fungus Botrytis cinerea were growing, intentionally introduced there for study. However, something else caught her attention: one of the plates was contaminated by mold, and curiously, a clear zone surrounded this intruder. Instead of discarding the plate and ignoring it as mere contamination, Maria Miguel decided to investigate the reason behind that clear area. Her curiosity revealed that the mold had a surprising ability to inhibit the growth of Botrytis cinerea in its vicinity.
“Sometimes we look at something and think it's a mistake. The truth is that within a failure, there can be something good,” shares the researcher. The emotion and enthusiasm of a researcher when realizing that what at first seemed like an obstacle, a negative result, can actually be an opportunity, is contagious. For Maria Miguel, this “error” transformed into a serendipitous discovery with enormous potential.
Maria Miguel, a researcher at the InPP's Department of New Biopesticides, transformed an unexpected event into a groundbreaking discovery: a broad-spectrum biofungicide to combat gray mold in tomato plants.
Beyond chance: The active ingredients of scientific discovery
As the story of this biofungicide demonstrates, the world of science is full of examples of discoveries that arose from the unexpected. One of the most famous cases is the discovery of penicillin by Alexander Fleming in 1928. While observing Petri dishes, Fleming noticed that a mold was producing a substance that eliminated Staphylococcus aureus bacteria around it. He identified the mold as Penicillium notatum and named his revolutionary antibiotic penicillin. Penicillin ended up becoming an extremely important drug for fighting infections.
However, chance is not the only protagonist of these important revelations. “Sometimes we have to follow our intuition and be able to prove that we are right or wrong,” explains Maria Miguel. In addition to intuition, a generous dose of curiosity, an open mind to accept unexpected results, a solid scientific knowledge, and the ability to see and advance to further investigations on surprising results play a crucial role in the alchemy of discovery.
The ecosystem of discovery: Fostering an environment conducive to innovation
There are other ingredients that contribute to the recipe for scientific success:
Creativity: The ability to generate new perspectives, concepts, questions, or solutions, and the willingness to explore existing ideas under a new light.
Flexibility: The courage to venture into unknown territories without fear of failure, thus increasing the odds of serendipitous encounters.
But no discovery flourishes in isolation. At InPP, the strong team spirit and culture of collaboration transcend departmental boundaries. Maria Miguel's discovery is a testament to this synergy, as she herself acknowledges: “My colleagues opened doors so that I could do my research.”
To foster innovation, organizations need to cultivate an environment that stimulates open discussions and connects people from diverse areas of knowledge and life experiences, without judgment; that encourages curiosity and receptiveness to new experiences; and that promotes a relentless pursuit of improving scientific knowledge, the fertile ground where serendipity can germinate.
Sowing the future: The impact of a discovery and the path of research
Although Maria Miguel is about to embark on a new journey, driven by a prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie doctoral fellowship - a program that supports the career of researchers and promotes excellence and innovation in research - her legacy at InPP is already flourishing. Her innovative discovery is opening new and promising doors for future research in the area of crop protection, demonstrating how, at times, it is in the unexpected that the potential to transform our world lies.
Beyond strategy: The secret ingredient of innovation
On the road to success, organizations define strategies, plan every step and invest in crucial resources such as selling services and products, applying for projects, drawing up solid business plans and protecting intellectual property. However, there is an element that is often overlooked, but which is fundamental to the flourishing of innovation: serendipity. But what exactly is this mysterious force and why is it so vital to the advancement of agriculture and so many other areas?
When chance opens doors: The power of unplanned discovery
Serendipity is the art of finding something valuable when you're looking for something else. It's the unintentional discoveries that arise from unexpected situations. Throughout history, some of the most transformative innovations have not been the result of a rigorous plan, but rather a chance encounter with the unknown. While deliberate research and methodical experimentation are pillars of scientific and technological progress, openness to the unexpected proves to be a powerful catalyst. When researchers cultivate this openness, they often stumble upon revelations that have the potential to revolutionize entire industries, transform technologies and expand our understanding of the world around us.
A close look at “error”: The genesis of an innovative biofungicide
Today, we unveil the surprising and inspiring story of Maria Miguel, a talented researcher from InPP's New Biopesticides Department, whose acumen turned a chance event into a priceless discovery: a broad-spectrum biofungicide capable of combating the Botrytis cinerea, the relentless fungus responsible for the devastating gray rot disease in tomato plants. This pathology represents one of the biggest phytosanitary challenges in tomato cultivation, especially when grown in greenhouses, causing significant losses to producers if it is not controlled in good time.
From discard to discovery: The insight of a researcher
The journey of this discovery began in a setting familiar to any researcher: the observation of Petri dishes, used to grow cultures of cells or microorganisms. On Maria Miguel's plates, colonies of the fungus Botrytis cinerea were growing, intentionally introduced there for study. However, something else caught her eye: one of the plates was contaminated by mold, and curiously, a clear area surrounded this intruder. Instead of discarding the plate and dismissing it as mere contamination, Maria Miguel decided to investigate the reason behind the clear area. Her curiosity revealed that the mold had a surprising ability to prevent the growth of Botrytis cinerea in its vicinity.
“Sometimes we look at something and think it's a mistake. The truth is that in a failure there can be something good,” the researcher shares. The excitement and enthusiasm of a researcher realizing that what at first glance seemed like an obstacle, a negative result, could actually be an opportunity, is contagious. For Maria Miguel, this “mistake” turned into a serendipitous discovery with enormous potential.
Maria Miguel, a researcher at InPP's New Biopesticides Department, who turned an unexpected event into a discovery that changed the course of her work: a broad-spectrum biofungicide to combat gray rot in tomato plants.
Beyond chance: The active ingredients of scientific discovery
As the history of this biofungicide shows, the world of science is full of examples of discoveries that came out of the blue. One of the most famous cases is Alexander Fleming's discovery of penicillin in 1928. While observing Petri dishes, Fleming noticed that a mold was producing a substance that eliminated bacteria Staphylococcus aureus around him. He identified the mold as Penicillium notatum and named his revolutionary antibiotic penicillin. Penicillin ended up becoming an extremely important medicine for fighting infections.
However, chance is not the only protagonist of these important revelations. “Sometimes we have to follow our intuition and be able to prove ourselves right or wrong,” explains Maria Miguel. In addition to intuition, a generous dose of curiosity, an open mind to accept unexpected results, solid scientific knowledge and the ability to see and move on to further research into surprising results play a crucial role in the alchemy of discovery.
The discovery ecosystem: Fostering an environment conducive to innovation
There are other ingredients that contribute to the recipe for scientific success:
Creativity: The ability to generate new perspectives, concepts, questions or solutions, and the willingness to explore existing ideas in a new light.
Flexibility: The courage to venture into unknown territory without the fear of failure, thus increasing the chances of serendipitous encounters.
But no discovery flourishes in isolation. At InPP, the strong team spirit and culture of collaboration transcend departmental boundaries. The case of Maria Miguel's discovery is testimony to this synergy, as she herself acknowledges: “My colleagues opened doors so that I could do my research”.
To foster innovation, organizations need to cultivate an environment that encourages open discussions and connects people from different areas of knowledge and life experiences, without judgment; that encourages curiosity and receptiveness to new experiences; and that promotes an incessant quest to improve scientific knowledge, the fertile ground where serendipity can germinate.
Sowing the future: The impact of a discovery and the path of research
Although Maria Miguel is about to embark on a new journey, boosted by a prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie PhD scholarship - a program that supports the careers of researchers and promotes excellence and innovation in research - her legacy at InPP is already flourishing. Her groundbreaking discovery is opening promising new doors for future research in the field of crop protection, demonstrating how sometimes it is in the unexpected that the potential to transform our world lies.
InnovPlantProtect (InPP) took part in the “III Colloquium on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides - What Future?”, which was held on May 24 at the Santarem Polytechnic Institute's Santarém Higher Agricultural School (ESAS).
The colloquium, organized by the Portuguese Horticultural Association, the National Horticultural Operational and Technological Centre (COTHN) and ESAS, aimed to provide policymakers with a current picture of the agricultural sector and the legislation, innovation, difficulties, opportunities and needs of crop protection.
The promoters organized the Colloquium at an opportune moment, following the European Commission's decision last February not to proceed with the revision of the Directive on the Sustainable Use of Pesticides, but in which the goals and ambition of the European Green Deal are maintained.
Portugal is the country in the European Union with the second highest rate of reduction in pesticide use and 10% of authorized plant protection products are biopesticides.
The round-table event brought together speakers from agricultural confederations, associations representing agricultural sub-sectors, universities, public and private laboratories, the Ministry of Agriculture, MPs and MEPs.
Pedro Fevereiro, executive director of InPP, was one of the speakers on the panel “Session II - What is the future?”, which took place between 2:30 and 4:30 p.m. and included the deputy director of the Directorate-General for Food and Veterinary (DGAV), Paula Cruz Garcia, the president of CropLife Portugal, Felisbela Campos, Cristina Carlos from the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro (UTAD), Social Democratic Party MP Emília Cerqueira, chair of the Assembly of the Republic's Agriculture and Fisheries Committee, and João Frazão, a member of the Portuguese Communist Party's political committee. The moderator was João Baptista, a journalist from the newspaper Mais Ribatejo.
Last Wednesday morning, May 15, another Farmers“ Day was held at the Innovation Hub in Elvas, under the motto ”Challenges and opportunities for the sustainable intensification of agriculture", which was attended by the Minister of Agriculture and Fisheries, José Manuel Fernandes.
InnovPlantProtect (InPP) was present at this event, promoted by the National Institute for Agrarian and Veterinary Research (INIAV, IP), a founding member of InPP, which aimed to promote the dynamics of innovation that result in the valorization of national production and also in people settling in the territories.
The initiative kicked off with a speech by the Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, who highlighted the importance of the agricultural sector, stressing that “Agriculture is much more than numbers and GDP. It's territorial cohesion, it's landscape, it's culture, it's gastronomy, it's tourism”, and he also listed as priority areas for action the improvement of farmers' incomes, the attraction of younger people and the link with academia and research, which must be based on a perspective of territorial cohesion.
This was followed by a round table on “Territory, Capacity Building, Research and Innovation”, moderated by José Palha, representing the CerealTech Competence Center, and with the participation of Nuno Canada, President of INIAV, Paulo Fernandes, Mayor of Fundão, Bernardo Albino, Vice-President of the National Association of Protein, Oilseed and Cereal Producers (ANPOC) and João Madeira, from the Extensive Grazing Competence Center.
The round table concluded with the presentation of the Cereais do Alentejo range of products, a registered trademark of ANPOC which, like the Fundão Cherry, aims to enhance national cereal production; and with the launch of the technical guide “Cereais Praganosos - A Produtividade e a Qualidade Constroem-se”, a manual that results from the compilation of the most relevant knowledge transmitted over the years in the Technical Training for Autumn/Winter Cereal Production, jointly promoted by ANPOC, INIAV and the Polytechnic Institute of Beja since 2016.
Congratulations to INIAV for the initiative!
Farmers' Day is an annual initiative that brings together hundreds of farmers and companies in the sector.
Today, May 16, is National Scientists' Day in Portugal and InnovPlantProtect (InPP) has issued a challenge to its scientists - to record their day-to-day lives in the Collaborative Lab. InPP promoted a photo competition open to its entire community who submitted photos showing a little of what their day-to-day life as scientists is like.
The team then chose the three best photos through an internal voting process and today opened the voting to the online community on the institutional social networks so that they can choose who the big winner is.
To choose your favorite photo, all you have to do is vote in the poll that we will be launching on the social networks LinkedIn and Facebook from 2pm, and which will be available until the end of today.
Congratulations to researchers Maria Miguel, Francisca Rodrigues and Francesca Messina, authors of the photos below. Thanks to all the participants for the fantastic photos submitted!
We wish a Happy National Scientist Day to all our scientists and researchers who dedicate their lives to curiosity, to trying to understand how the world works, and who are increasingly concerned about sharing this knowledge with others. Together we all contribute to building the future!
National Scientists' Day was established in 2016 and aims to recognize the contribution of the scientific community to the advancement of knowledge, progress and the well-being of society.
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