EPPO Webinar on Communication 2025
Plant Health in Focus: raising awareness of regulated and emerging pests for professionals and the public
1st Webinar of the Panel on Plant Protection Information, 2025-04-04
A screenshot from the Webinar on Communication.
The EPPO Webinar on Communication ‘Plant Health in Focus: raising awareness of regulated and emerging pests for professionals and the public’ took place on the 4th of April 2025, and was attended by more than 240 participants from 55 countries, including 45 EPPO countries. It was organized by the EPPO Panel on Plant Protection Information to highlight successful examples of Plant Health communication for professionals and the public by National Plant Protection Organizations (NPPOs).
The webinar hosted speakers from the EPPO Panel on Plant Protection Information, including presenters from the NPPOs of the Austria, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The international audience and number of questions asked demonstrated the high level of interest and importance of effective communication campaigns on plant health.
Speakers presented a range of subjects. The webinar started with an overview of the two recent EPPO Standards, EPPO Standard PM 3/94 Raising professional operators’ awareness or regulated and emerging pests, and EPPO Standard PM 3/86 Raising public awareness of quarantine and emerging pests. Speakers then covered some excellent case studies from their NPPOs on specific courses or awareness raising campaigns. The webinar finished with a presentation on the Platform on Communication, which was launched in 2022 to help NPPOs share successful plant health campaigns and inspire others.
Finally, participants were encouraged to raise the profile of plants as part of the ‘One Health’ approach for the International Day of Plant Health which will take place on 12th May 2025.
We also invite contact persons from the NPPOs of EPPO member countries to register on the Platform on Communication here. You can also find the guide for how to use the Platform here.
A screenshot of the Platform on Communication Material
The EPPO Secretariat warmly thanks all attendees for their active participation during the webinar, and to speakers who kindly shared their experiences with the audience.
Summaries, presentations and the full video are available below.
Watch the recording of the webinar
Click on the image to watch the webinar recording on YouTube.
Presentations
You can access the programme and speaker bios here. Click on the links below to access the presentations.
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Paul Beales, UK Animal and Plant Health Agency |
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Enhancing detection of tree pests and diseases through targeted courses for professionals Miriam Widmer, Federal Office for the Environment, Switzerland |
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Case Study from Austria: Japanese beetle campaign and national reporting platform Christina Topitschnig, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety, Plant Protection Service |
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Integration of multiple communication channels for an effective campaign Mariangela Ciampitti, Servizio Fitosanitario DG Agricoltura, Italy |
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Case Study from France: 2 regional initiatives for professional operators Camille Génévriez, Ministry of Agriculture and Food, France |
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Bart van de Vossenberg, hosted by Hans Meerman, Netherlands Food and Consumer Product Safety Authority, Netherlands |
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Introducing the EPPO Platform on Communication Samuel Warner, EPPO Scientific Officer |
Related Information
- Web page for the Panel on Plant Protection Information here.
- To register for the EPPO Platform on Communication, please visit here.
- See the EPPO Standard PM 3/94 (1) Raising professional operators' awareness of regulated and emerging plant pests here.
- See the EPPO Standard PM 3/86 (1) Raising public awareness of Quarantine and Emerging Pests here.