ferrugem-amarela – InnovPlantProtect

NEWS

InPP joins BioLivingLABS project - Bioeconomy at the service of the sustainability of inland territories

September 22, 2025
Blog, Highlight, News, Project
Ines Ferreira

InnovPlantProtect (InPP) recently received approval for an application submitted to COMPETE2030-2024-6 - Collective Actions - Transfer of scientific and technological knowledge - BioLivingLABS - Bioeconomy at the service of the sustainability of inland territories, led by MORE CoLAB - Laboratório Colaborativo Montanhas de Investigação, Associação, in partnership with the Polytechnic Institute of Bragança (IPB), the Polytechnic Institute of Castelo Branco (IPCB) and AQUAVALOR.

BioLivingLABS aims to promote the economic valorization of research and development (R&D) results obtained by various institutions in the North, Center and Alentejo. To this end, it will create an experimental demonstration network, the so-called Living Labs, The project will be held in the innovation hubs of Mirandela, Douro, Covilhã and Elvas. In addition, demonstration actions, workshops, an inland innovation catalog and training on intellectual property protection will be developed with the aim of encouraging the incorporation of innovative solutions in the business sectors of these regions.

Scheduled to begin in October and lasting 24 months, the project has a total eligible investment of over 740,000 euros, financed by COMPETE2030 - Thematic Program for Innovation and Digital Transition. For InPP, this project is a strategic opportunity to strengthen its mission as a center for technology development and transfer, boosting the practical application of scientific knowledge to promote sustainable development.

This initiative confirms InPP's commitment to open and sustainable innovation, integrating science, technology and regional development to respond to the challenges and potential of the interior of the country.

InPP took part in an Open Day dedicated to the cereals of Baixo Mondego

September 19, 2025
Blog, Highlight, News
Ines Ferreira

On September 18, the executive director of InnovPlantProtect (InPP), António Saraiva, the director of the New Biopesticides Department, Cristina Azevedo, and researcher Luís Grilo attended the Open Day “The Cereals of Baixo Mondego”, promoted by the Centro Regional Coordination and Development Commission (CCDR Centro), at the Bico da Barca Experimental Unit in Montemor-o-Velho.

The event highlighted the latest innovations from the Coimbra Innovation Hub, from new technologies applied to maize and rice, to fertilization strategies, protection and the use of biostimulants on these key crops in the Baixo Mondego region.

Our team also monitored trials with biofungicides, including the product I21, developed with our collaborative laboratory to combat pyriculariosis in two rice varieties, which is being patented.

In an interview with Voice of the Countryside, Cristina Azevedo shared the work we have been doing in the area of biosolutions.

(Re)watch the interview here.

Image credits: InnovPlantProtect and Voz do Campo magazine

Maize in Portugal: phytosanitary challenges and new emerging threats

August 19, 2025
Blog, Highlight, News
Ines Ferreira

Maize continues to be the Portugal's most important arable crop, The sector has a significant impact on food safety and the national agri-food industry. Involving thousands of producers and generating tens of millions of euros a year, the sector is currently facing increasingly complex phytosanitary challenges.

Among already known pests and emerging diseases, there are risks ranging from cartridge caterpillar until Maize Rugose Dwarfism Virus (MRDV), The presence of this virus is increasing in Portugal. This virus, transmitted by the corn leafhopper, can seriously compromise production and is found in the climate change increasingly favorable conditions for its spread.

However, it's not just MRDV that's worrying. There are new threats that require vigilance, such as the coleopter Diabrotica virgifera or the MDMV virus (Maize Dwarf Mosaic Virus), already detected in neighboring countries, and also toxic weeds, such as the winter fig (Datura stramonium), which in addition to impacting productivity pose public health risks.

Faced with this reality, the answer is integrated and sustainable strategies, matching:

crop rotation and good agricultural practices;
careful use of insecticides to avoid resistance and environmental impacts;
resistant or tolerant varieties, where available;
research and technological innovation, including new digital tools for early detection.

As the InnovPlantProtect researcher points out, Nuno Faria, in the article entitled “The main emerging pests and diseases of the maize crop in Portugal”, available in the August edition of Voz do Campo magazine: “The phytosanitary panorama of maize in Portugal requires continuous vigilance, investment in research and the application of integrated and sustainable strategies capable of responding to an increasingly dynamic and unpredictable reality.”

To find out more about the main current risks and mitigation measures, read the full article published in the August issue of Voz do Campo magazine (pages 88-89), available on newsstands and online.

EVENTS

Fascination of Plants: the link to school and community

May 24, 2021
Blog
Ines Ferreira

“It was motivating for the students to realize what they can do given what they study at school, and even how they can contribute to their own community.” This is the opinion of Telma Rafael, a teacher at D. Sancho II Secondary School, in Elvas, who today, May 24th, accompanied the pedipaper held at the Municipal Garden of the city, for the 11th grade class of the Professional Technical Course in Agricultural Production.

The activity, co-organized by the collaborative laboratory InnovPlantProtect (InPP) and that educational institution, as part of the celebrations of the International Day for the Fascination of Plants, to which the Elvas City Council (CME) joined in, with the aim of allowing the students to explore, identify and marvel at the different trees in the Garden - the largest green space in the city - and their differentiating characteristics.

The 26 young people present, who had the opportunity to share experiences with half a dozen InPP researchers, “enjoyed the activity”, which they found “very interesting and interactive”, says Telma Rafael. Divided into teams, they had to travel along a predefined route, meeting a dozen different trees, answering questions about them and solving tasks.

As a result of this activity, InPP, Escola Secundária D. Sancho II, the association AIAR and CME intend to continue collaborating with a view to developing an identification system for the Garden's trees based on a QR code, which will allow mobile access to a “digital brochure” with information about the plants.

Trees in the Municipal Garden sketched by urban sketchers

May 20, 2021
Blog, Uncategorized
Ines Ferreira

Watercolors, pencils, charcoal... there were several techniques used by the participants in the activity of urban sketching held on May 18, in the late afternoon, at the Elvas Municipal Garden. The session was co-organized by the association AIAR and the collaborative lab InnovPlantProtect (InPP), with the support of Elvas City Council (CME), in celebration of the International Day for the Fascination of Plants.

Open to the public, the meeting attracted around a dozen sketchers. “The participants were super friendly and super interested,” says Pedro Rosa, an InPP researcher, who took part in the initial tour to introduce the designers to the Garden's plants. Carla Moreira, InPP's project manager, highlights “the sharing of experiences, both by the researchers and the participants”.

The initiative also paved the way for future collaborations and greater interaction between AIAR and InPP. Together with D. Sancho II Secondary School and the CME, cooperation is already planned with a view to developing an identification system for the Garden's trees, based on a QR code, which will allow mobile access to a “digital brochure” with information about the plants.

Plant Fascination Day is an initiative of the European Plant Science Organization (EPSO), which takes place every two years on May 18th. It is coordinated at national level by the Portuguese Society of Plant Physiology and by the ITQB NOVA, and included events across the country.

Students fascinated by trees in the Municipal Garden through pedipaper

May 20, 2021
Blog
Ines Ferreira

Challenging and fun: that's how most of the students at the D. Sancho II Secondary School rated the pedipaper made in Elvas Municipal Garden on May 18th, in celebration of the International Day for the Fascination of Plants. Some running, others walking, more than 80 young people from three 10th grade classes took part in the tree identification game all morning, answering questions and solving tasks.

“It depends a lot on the enthusiasm of the kids,” observes Pedro Rosa, a researcher at the collaborative laboratory InnovPlantProtect (InPP), who considers that the pedipaper “went well”: “There was communication, [the students] were attentive; we had a very good connection.” “It was very positive for the students” understanding of the diversity that exists in the Garden, as well as their contact with the CoLab," said Carla Moreira, InPP's project manager.

The initiative, to which Elvas City Council (The event was organized by the InPP and the Secondary School of Agrupamento de Escolas n.º 3 de Elvas. The aim was to allow the youngsters, who are studying biodiversity this year, to explore, identify and marvel at the different trees in the garden - the largest green space in the city - and their differentiating characteristics. Another class, from the multimedia technical course, was on site to capture images of the event.