FAO and EU strengthen production of biopesticides in Cuba

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in Cuba support the transformation of local food systems to strengthen the production of biopesticides.

Advanced technologies and inputs for the production of biopesticides are now ready for implementation at the Plant Health Research Institute (Inisav) in this capital.

The initiative has funding from the European Union (EU) and is part of the project ″Strengthening the integrated knowledge management system for sustainable food security in Cuba″ (Consas), highlighted the FAO coordinator-consultant for this project, Aymara Garcia, on behalf of the FAO representative in Cuba, Marcelo Resende.

The donation benefits the Inisav laboratory with various supplies such as: freeze-dryer, refrigerated orbital sieve, mixers, scales, humidity analyzer and filters for the fermenter, among others aimed at increasing and improving production of biopesticides, she highlighted.

This -García indicated- will have a direct impact on the integrated management of pests in more than five thousand hectares of land, located in six municipalities of the central provinces of Villa Clara and Sancti Spíritus.

The FAO coordinator-consultant stressed that the initiative is in correspondence with the Law on Food Sovereignty and Food and Nutritional Security (SSAN Law), which has among its priorities to reduce dependence on external resources and strengthen local production of inputs, among them biopesticides.

In addition, she pointed out that it allows harvests to be obtained with a lower level of residues, which contribute to greater food safety with a direct impact on the health of the population.

For her part, the director of Inisav, Marlene Veítia, alluded to the use of biopesticides as strategic for Cuba, because it provides technological sovereignty, reduces the import and use of chemical pesticides that can contribute to the contamination of the water table and cause imbalance in the agricultural system, among other negative effects.

He pointed out that the donation favors the quality and stable supply of the strains used for the production of bioproducts in Cuba and improves their conservation, which represents savings in resources in their transportation to the provincial plant health laboratories and the entomophagous reproduction centers of entomopathogens.

During the day, a work agreement was also signed between Inisav and the Consas project, aimed at training capacities to promote food security in the Caribbean nation through knowledge management, science and innovation.