Partnering with Koppert Foundation on Nature-Based Pest Controls

In August 2022, East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer Foundation leaders toured sustainable agriculture company Koppert to learn more about biological management of pests and diseases. Koppert develops biological and nature-based controls to protect crops from pests, and these products could benefit smallholder farmers in the tropical areas where we work.

That connection with Koppert has now led to the signing of a memorandum of understanding between EWS-KT and Koppert Foundation to develop and promote biological-control-based or nature-based methods to improve smallholder farmers’ plant health and performance.

The collaboration will include:

• Development of sustainable, nature-based methods to grow healthy and productive crops with minimum input of pesticides and chemical fertilizers
• Demonstration of these sustainable methods and implementation by smallholder farmers
• Development of practical protocols and training/extension materials
• Education of smallholder farmers on the use of these integrated crop management (ICM) protocols

This partnership will promote EWS-KT’s objective of sharing new technical solutions to smallholder vegetable farmers, and Koppert Foundation’s objective of contributing to better health of people and the planet by partnering with nature to make agriculture healthier, safer, and more productive. 

About Koppert Foundation
Koppert B.V., based in the Netherlands, is the worldwide leader in the research, development, and production of biological crop protection and natural pollination products. Established in 2017, Koppert Foundation is the extension of the company’s mission to make agriculture healthier, safer, and more productive in collaboration with nature. Koppert Foundation contributes to the life quality of people and improves their well-being by offering solutions and educational opportunities that will positively influence their social, economic, environmental, and health circumstances, as well as stimulating the interaction with their families and local communities. The foundation contributes to sustainable solutions for horticulture and agriculture and improves the health and availability of food and nutrition for those who need it most.

About East-West Seed Knowledge Transfer Foundation (EWS-KT)
Established by esteemed seed company East-West Seed, EWS-KT trains smallholder farmers in sustainable and profitable horticultural techniques and hones their business skills. In this way, EWS-KT aims to increase the supply of safe-to-eat vegetables in markets serving lower-income consumers, while simultaneously catalyzing the development of innovative agricultural-input markets. Since 2015, EWS-KT has trained nearly 588,000 farmers in less-developed areas of Asia and Africa.