1st Breakout Session - Black Team: M. Johnson, Leader
List opportunities for commercialization of biocontrol.
- Funding of foreign exploration & introductions by private industry and end users.
- Gene & genome exploration & development.
- Tax incentives to industries developing biological control tactics.
- Chemical (pesticide) companies to be taxed to support biological control.
- Identify and exploit genome of BC agents (e.g., exploit parasitoid venom genes).
- Small business grants to promote new biological control efforts.
- Possible niche opportunities opened up by the Food Quality and Protection Act.
- Further exploit CRADA / possibly let grower groups participate.
- Australia — Cooperative Research Centers / brings together interested groups & funding / all groups contribute funding.
- More research lines in biological control / university / USDA & State / not enough people working on biological control tactics, strategies & research.
- Who will fund future efforts in biopesticides? Too many failures = risky business.
- Technology Transfer / purchasing of patent rights.
- Expedited registration of biocontrol agents and genetically engineered biologicals.
- Don’t forget the organic market / should maintain ability to cater to the Organic Market / should exploit the Organic Market and strengthen ties to that market.
- Expedite the governmental permitting process (USDA APHIS).
- More education on biological control.
- Prove efficacy of arthropod and other biological control agents.
- Integration of biological controls with conventional pesticides.
- Pesticide-resistant biocontrol agents (e.g., carbaryl resistant predatory mites).
- Selling / marketing biological control expertise / knowledge.
- More incentives from the commercial biological control industry.
- More regulation of conventional pesticides.
Identify five of these opportunities that are novel and have potential for development in the next ten years.
- Possible niche opportunities opened up by the Food Quality and Protection Act.
- Gene & genome exploration & development.
- Cater to and exploit the Organic Market.
- Improved integration of biocontrol agents with conventional pesticides.
- Marketing biological control expertise and knowledge, including the activities of foreign exploration and introduction of exotic agents.
Using the opportunities as a starting point, identify the key legal issues as ramifications that will play a role, one way or the other, in the effective commercialization of biocontrol. List key obstacles and identify the most important. Who or what could resolve obstacles? (For example, consider protection of intellectual property through patents or copyrights; authorities, liabilities, regulatory issues.)
- Non-target impacts.
- Regulatory delays & complexities.
- Difficulty of exploiting non-indigenous micro-organisms.
- Ability to "patent" a modified / enhanced strain.
- Governments’ rights (i.e., Brazil) to indigenous / endemic organisms used in classical introduction programs or commercialization.
- International trade in genetically enhanced natural enemies.
- Registration of biological control agents in some countries.
- Genetically modified natural enemies cannot be used in organic agriculture.
- Formulation of biopesticides is not accepted by organic farmers.
- Cannot freely integrate conventional pesticides and biopesticides.
- Company liability for failure of biological products.
Identify the key financial or business issues that will play a role, one way or the other, in the effective commercialization of biocontrol. List key obstacles and identify the three most important. Who or what could resolve obstacles? (For example, consider start-up costs, profit margin, client base, economics of scale, competition, markets.)
- Funding of small companies doing biological control startup research
- Small market size for many biologicals
- Risk aversion on the part of investors and users
- High competition among companies producing / marketing biologicals
- Distribution of products with short shelf life
- Patent costs.
Identify the key scientific and technological issues that will play a role one way or the other, in the effective commercialization of biocontrol. List key obstacles and identify the three most important. Who or what could resolve obstacles? (For example, consider available technology; employee, client and environmental safety; geographical scope of product or service.)
- Need proof of efficacy of biological control products / often lacking.
- Production & formulation of products.
- Quality control.
- Need a basic understanding of the mechanisms that make biological control work.
- Lack of staffing of biological control researchers / workers.
- Compatibility with grower practices (e.g., disking fields, mowing, pesticides).
- Application of technology and strategy.
- Better understanding of more organismal genomes (preferably natural enemies).
- Free flow of biological material & information among biological control workers.
Identify the key education and communication issues that will play a role one way or the other, in the effective commercialization of biocontrol. List key obstacles and identify the most important. Who or what could resolve obstacles? (For example, consider user education/market changes; user, extension, and regulation education; public relations and marketing strategies.)
- Need to educate the users of biological control.
- "Give-me" hats (for advertisement & promotion of biological control).
- Inability to physically reach users due to limited staff and funding.
- Complexity of using biocontrol agents — not a simple system like most pesticides.
- Consumer education relative to lowering demands for spotless produce.
- Commercializing IPM via use of product labels (e.g., stores promote IPM grown produce as "premium").
- Consumer / commercial incentives to use biological control.
- Development of consulting services that provide technological information backup to farmer beyond Cooperative Extension.
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