Biocontrol Technologies to sell T34 biofungicide in the European Union as a biological plant protection product for edible crops

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) of the United Kingdom has authorized the use of T34 Biocontrol in Europe for ornamental plants and crops of tomatoes, peppers, chilli peppers, and eggplants. T34 Biocontrol is a biological fungicide developed by Biocontrol Technologies, a spin-off of the University of Barcelona. This plant protection product offers an alternative to chemical pesticides; it contains spores of Trichoderma asperellum strain T34, a naturally occurring fungus that has demonstrated excellent efficacy against foliar and soil-borne diseases—such as Pythium spp, Rhizoctonia spp, Sclerotinia spp, and Botrytis spp, among others—which affect a wide variety of crops.

After the evaluation of T34 by the United Kingdom, Biocontrol Technologies has been registered for the first time as a plant protection product for ornamental and edible plants in the European Union; this is in line with the regulations aimed to reduce chemicals in agriculture in order to protect the environment and human health. Six other European countries where the application to sell this plant protection product was submitted (Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Belgium, and the Netherlands) have 120 days to issue their final authorization after appraising the documents provided by British authorities.

Since 2014, T34 is used with very good results in the cultivation of grapes, potatoes, and green beans in Egypt; the sales of T34 for use in crops and ornamental plants started in 2015, whereas in 2016, Hungary has also started to use it on sunflowers as a growth promoter to increase crop production. The product is getting very good acceptance by farmers, both for its effectiveness and for its easy application.