S&G stages II Syngenta Horticultural Symposium in Almería

Nearly 400 people, including technical experts, producers and marketers, attended the Syngenta Horticultural Symposium, organised on 27 November 2007 by S&G, Syngenta Seeds’ horticultural seed brand.

The venue for the symposium was Syngenta Seed’s Research and Testing Centre, "Rafael Cantón", in El Ejido (Almería, Spain), where experts from the agricultural sector analysed the strategies that are required in order to face the challenges of today’s market, with a particular focus on the pepper, tomato and biological control sectors.

“The market makes demands and our agriculture responds”
Under the slogan of “The market makes demands and our agriculture responds”, the symposium aimed to offer a review of the horticultural sector in Almería, which has undergone considerable changes as it evolves more and more towards Integrated Pest Management and biological control.

Mr. Pedro Pleguezuelo, Product Manager of Syngenta, and Mr. Juan Luís Pérez, Head of Vegetables Sales for Syngenta Seeds in Southern Europe and the Middle East, opened the symposium and welcomed the participants. The first address was given by Mr. Antonio Monserrat, a technical expert from the Health Service of the Ministry of Agriculture and Water in Murcia (Spain), who spoke about the measures taken to prevent the development of tomato leafminer (Tuta Absoluta), a disease which appeared in Murcia in July, but which is yet to spread to the greenhouses in the region.

Mr. Monserrat outlined the key measures that should be put into effect to fight leafminer infestations, highlighting the isolation of harvests, hygienic measures and technological, chemical and biological control as the most effective weapons.

Market trends in fresh produce
The second address, offered by Mr. David Del Pino, General Director of the Andalusian co-operative Carchuna La Palma, focused on the latest market trends in fresh produce.

Mr. Del Pino spoke of how flavour and taste have gained in importance in the fresh produce sector over the last few years. “If you want your product to maintain its position in the market, you must offer the consumer something that is both beautiful to look at and good to taste. Then your client will decide to buy your product again”, Mr. Del Pino declared.

Key role of technical staff in IPM
The next speaker was Mr. Jan van der Blom, Head of Pest Control at the Provincial Association of Fruit & Vegetable Growers and Exporters in Almería (Coexphal), who explained the present position regarding IPM strategies. Van der Blom highlighted the important role played by expert technical staff in IPM. He also spoke of Almería’s position in relation to European countries and the revolutionary changes that IPM has brought to the region: “If we continue along this path, Almería will maintain its role as Europe’s leading producer of horticultural products”.

Experts advise the sector
After this address, a round table was held, which offered advice on the employment of integrated pest management and included a question and answer session.

One of the members of the round table was Francisco Sola, Head of the Technical Department at SAT Nature Choice, who spoke of the need to keep a very watchful eye on each and every farm, in order to be able to take preventive action whenever necessary.

Francisco Petit, Head of the Technical Department at Murgiverde, outlined the business model followed by his company, where IPM techniques are now employed for a large proportion of its production.

Vicente Aparicio, Head of the Plant Health Department of the Regional Office of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Andalusian Government, presented some official data with respect to the total cultivation area where IPM is being used and the subsidies available in the sector for these techniques. Aparicio declared that these methods have proved successful in 99% of the pepper plantations where IPM has been introduced, and that for peppers alone, the area assigned to IPM has been increased to 5,000 hectares for the 2007/2008 campaign.

Finally, Juan Antonio Sánchez, a technician from the Department of Pest Control at Coexphal, insisted that “the tasks of introduction and control of auxiliary insects have to be performed in advance. The choice of when to sow is a very important factor, as are irrigation and fertilisation. The usual practice is to release the insects in the third and fourth week in order to combat thrips and to be prepared for when crops begin to show signs of the virus.”

Spain: an important country for Syngenta Seeds
In bringing the symposium to a close, Mr. Michael Kester, Head of Vegetables for Syngenta Seeds in EAME, declared that Spain is a very important country for the company, adding that Syngenta has a sharp focus on I+D strategies: “To date, our company has concentrated on aspects that concern the farmer, but now, thanks to the evolution of the company, we can focus our line of attack on aspects of concern and interest to the consumer.”

At the end of the symposium, participants and Syngenta Seeds technical staff visited the facilities where Syngenta tests its varieties of tomato, pepper, cucumber and courgette and other products. Participants had the opportunity to see the varieties that will be commercialised during the next campaign.

Both the organisers and the delegates concluded that this II symposium had been a great success, due not only to the interesting nature of the subjects discussed, but also to the interest generated among the participants.

Syngenta Seeds Vegetables Tomatoes Today - November 2007