News & Events

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NEWS

In the March issue of Fruits, vegetables and flowers you will find the opinion article entitled “The role of InnovPlantProtect in Organic Farming: Paths to sustainable and efficient solutions”, in which the executive director of InnovPlantProtect (InPP), António Saraiva, reveals how our CoLAB is contributing to the success of organic farming.

“By boosting research, collaboration and knowledge sharing, InPP is helping to solve the central challenges of this practice [organic farming], allowing it to expand and enhancing the supply of agricultural products to consumers. The solutions developed by InPP make organic farming a more viable option for producers,” says the executive director.

Read the full article and find out how we are shaping the future of agriculture.

We thank Frutas, legumes e flores magazine for its recognition and reiterate our commitment to the agriculture of the future.

Imagine a future where drones and artificial intelligence work together to protect your vineyards. That's what the AI4Leafhopper project is making a reality!

Manisha Sirsat, a researcher on the AI4Leafhopper team, has developed two artificial intelligence models that analyze the aerial images captured by our latest generation drone... and these models make it possible:

  • geolocation of each vine
  • to know if there are vine failures
  • quickly identify “sick” vines”
  • optimize the application of treatments

The result? Growers can have a detailed view of the health of their vineyards, detect problems early and make more informed decisions.

Find out all about it here.

AI4Leafhopper is a project led by InPP and funded by the ICAERUS Horizon Europe program, which began in April 2024 and ended on April 30 with a final meeting involving the six European projects approved in the 1st edition of the ICAERUS program's PULL applications. The project team presented the AI-based models for detecting and monitoring the impact of the green leafhopper on vineyards.

The AI4Leafhopper project, InnovPlantProtect used a state-of-the-art drone to monitor the impact of the green leafhopper in the vineyards of our partners Reynolds Wine Growers and João Portugal Ramos. Although the results show that this advanced technology is more effective at detecting attacks at advanced stages, we are excited about the potential of this tool to provide valuable data for the management of this harmful insect.

We believe that with more research, we can refine our solution to detect early attacks and prevent significant damage to vineyards. Transforming the monitoring of this pest is where we want to go, always with the aim of protecting vineyards and guaranteeing the quality of production for winegrowers.

Over the next few days we'll be revealing everything that the AI4Leafhopper project is making a reality and how drones and artificial intelligence are working together to create a more sustainable future for viticulture. Stay tuned!

Find out all about it here.

AI4Leafhopper, funded by the ICAERUS Horizon Europe program, which began in April 2024, is now in its final stages. The development phase of the project, which took place in the field, is now over and the final stage is to present the solutions developed by our team on Portuguese soil to the market.

EVENTS

“InnovPlantProtect (InPP) is consolidating itself as a reference center in applied research, combining biotechnology and digitalization, to offer a range of solutions for crop protection, focused on the prevention, monitoring and mitigation of phytosanitary threats, but also on the delivery of bioinspired solutions (...) for the optimization of agricultural productivity,” António Saraiva, executive director of InnovPlantProtect (InPP), told Voz do Campo magazine.

In an opinion piece for this month's edition of Voz do Campo magazine, António Saraiva, InPP's executive director, highlighted CoLAB's commitment to innovation and sustainability, as well as its ability to attract and retain highly qualified young researchers. The opinion article “InnovPlantProtect: Science and Innovation at the Service of the Agricultural Challenges of the 21st Century” recognizes InPP's contribution to the transformation of agriculture.

The executive director also warns of the uncertainty over the future of InPP's public funding, and calls for the need to define a stable funding framework to guarantee the continuity of CoLAB's work.

Read the full article (in the file below) and find out how we are shaping the future of agriculture.

We thank Voz do Campo magazine for its recognition and reiterate our commitment to building a more sustainable and innovative agricultural future.

Opinion article “InnovPlantProtect: Science and Innovation at the Service of the Agricultural Challenges of the 21st Century” by António Saraiva, executive director of InPP, published in the March edition of Voz do Campo magazine.

The 12th National Maize Colloquium 2025, promoted by Anpromis, brought together around 600 farmers and specialists from the agri-food sector in Figueira da Foz to discuss the technical challenges, innovations and best practices associated with growing maize in Portugal, as well as the European challenges in the current geopolitical context.

The executive director of InnovPlantProtect (InPP), António Saraiva, moderated the panel on “The technical challenges of corn production in Portugal”, which included the participation of André Antunes, Consultant in agricultural resilience, Stéphane Jezequel, Technical Director of Arvalis, and Luís Queirós, Global Director for Fodder Additives at Lallemand Animal Nutrition.

The Minister for Agriculture and Fisheries, José Manuel Fernandes, closed the event with a speech focusing on the national strategic measures that are essential for cereal production and the instruments and financial resources that will benefit the agricultural sector.

InPP would like to thank Anpromis, a founding member of InPP, for inviting us to moderate the panel on “The technical challenges of corn production in Portugal”. It was an excellent moment for dialog and the exchange of knowledge, which is essential for the development of the sector!

Image credit: Anpromis

Left and middle photo: InPP's executive director, António Saraiva, moderating the panel “The technical challenges of maize production in Portugal” at the 12th National Maize Colloquium 2025; Right photo: The agricultural community gathered at the 12th National Maize Colloquium 2025 to debate the future of the agricultural sector.

The General Assembly of InnovPlantProtect (InPP), held last Tuesday, February 4, at the Auditorium of the National Institute for Agricultural and Veterinary Research (INIAV) - Elvas Campus, in Elvas, formally swore in the new governing bodies. NOVA University Lisbon, which was reappointed to the Board of Directors (BoD), nominated Margarida Oliveira to the position of Chair of the InPP BoD for the 2025-2027 triennium.

In her speech, re-elected president Margarida Oliveira said that this term of office will be marked by the challenge of capitalizing on the entire structure set up and the results already achieved by the INPP team, in order to guarantee the Association's financial sustainability and its continued ability to produce solutions for the market. “The INPP team is a source of pride for those who dreamed up what was just a project at the time, but which in just six years, and in the middle of a pandemic, has achieved strong recognition at national and international level,” he said.

The previous chairman of the General Assembly (GA), Domingos dos Santos, president of the National Federation of Fruit and Vegetable Producers“ Organizations (FNOP), handed over the presidency of the GA to Pedro Monteiro, chairman of the board of Casa do Arroz, and took the opportunity to thank him for his two terms and ”the way he has always been treated by the InPP“. FNOP is now a member of the Board of Directors. In his speech, the now chairman of the GA, Pedro Monteiro, highlighted his ”pride in representing the Board of Directors for six years and the great honor" for Casa do Arroz in accepting the Presidency of the GA.

António Saraiva, InPP's executive director, welcomed the new members of the Board of Directors for the 2025-2028 triennium, as well as the rest of the bodies. For the executive director, “CoLAB has made significant progress to ensure a solid future. We are implementing a series of strategic projects, improving the efficiency of our teams and our internal workings in order to better serve the agricultural ecosystem and our members. Today, we continue to bet on a stronger InPP, ready to establish itself as a benchmark in the development of new technologies, products and services with a strong innovation component. We will continue to work towards the modernization and competitiveness of agriculture, boosting knowledge of the agricultural sector and being a fundamental link between academia, companies and production. This is our mission and our ongoing commitment.”.

The new governing bodies are committed and motivated to making CoLAB grow and innovate, strengthening its representativeness in the agricultural sector.

The following governing bodies were elected for the three-year period 2025-2027:

General Meeting Board: Chair - Casa do Arroz; First Secretary - University of Évora and Second Secretary - Polytechnic Institute of Portalegre

Board of Directors: Chair - NOVA University Lisbon; Vice-Chair - INIAV

Board members: Syngenta Crop Protection, Fertiprado, ANPROMIS, FNOP and ANPOC.