Welcome to the VIRTIGATION project!
VIRTIGATION – Emerging viral diseases in tomatoes and cucurbits: implementation of mitigation strategies for disease management – is a new Horizon 2020 project on a mission to protect tomatoes and cucurbits in Northern Europe and the Mediterranean Basin.
In collaboration with key EU neighboring areas and trade partners across the globe – Morocco, Israel and India – VIRTIGATION and its partners will develop short-, medium- and long-term solutions to the emerging viral diseases caused by begomoviruses (whitefly-transmitted) and tobamoviruses (mechanically transmitted) on tomato and cucurbit crops. The VIRTIGATION project will further increase the know-how for better control and management of these viral diseases in the entire tomato and cucurbit value chain, thanks to its multi-actor approach anchored in co-creation and co-design.
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What is VIRTIGATION about?
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PRESS RELEASE: EU-funded VIRTIGATION combats viral crop destruction in tomato and cucurbit. Read our multilingual launch press release for general audience here and for specialist audience here
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VIRTIGATION is a new 4-year Horizon 2020 project, which was successfully launched with a virtual kick-off meeting on 15-16 June 2021 with partners and key policy stakeholders. Find out more here
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ToBRFV, ToLCNDV, Bemisia tabaci, IPM, viral genome sequencing – our #VIRTIGATION explained social media series shined a light on these key topics that VIRTIGATION is covering. Check out the Best of here
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VIRTIGATION contribution to the 2021 International Year of Fruits & Vegetables #IYFV2021. More here
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Protecting vital horticultural crops from emerging viral diseases – why it matters
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Two years of COVID-19 have taken a toll on our lives. But humans are not the only ones suffering from major viral diseases. Horticultural crops, especially tomato and cucurbit crops (zucchini, cucumber, melon and watermelon), suffer serious diseases caused by emerging viruses. And like the human SARS-CoV-2 virus, these plant viruses are not limited by borders.
In particular, begomoviruses and tobamoviruses threaten tomato and cucurbit crops across the world. They have already caused huge losses, from 15% to devastating entire crops. Viral infections are often the main factor limiting crop production. So protecting horticultural crops from emerging viral epidemics is essential.
In this context, VIRTIGATION aims to reduce these losses in tomato and cucurbit crops by at least 80%. VIRTIGATION’s multidisciplinary approach includes the induction of natural resistance, the design of vaccines, the use of biopesticides, and integrated control or cross-protection strategies.
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The project aims particularly at using bio-based solutions. Currently, the fight against emerging viral epidemics leads to extensive use of chemical pesticides. This implies greater exposure to the residues of these products, to growers, consumers and the environment alike. Hence, VIRTIGATION aims to halve the use of chemical pesticides to control plant viruses and their insect vectors. While it is crucial to defeat the threat of emerging viral epidemics to horticultural crops as quickly as possible, that does not mean that harmful methods should continue as usual.
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For this reason, VIRTIGATION seeks to work together with growers and stakeholders of the entire value chain to protect tomato and cucurbit crops with environmentally friendly solutions. VIRTIGATION wants to co-design its research activities and mitigation strategies in a way that is useful, especially for the key horticultural crops of tomatoes and cucurbits. Thus, our training through our multi-stakeholder network aims to ensure that project solutions can be easily and readily applied in the field.
We are starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel with the COVID-19 vaccines. It is about time that it is the same for the emerging viral diseases in tomatoes and cucurbits as crucial horticultural crops.
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Meet the VIRTIGATION experts
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VIRTIGATION brings together 25 partners from 12 different countries across the globe. Top universities, research & technology organizations, industry, SMEs and growers come together to combat the threat of emerging viral diseases to tomatoes and cucurbits. Find out about our partners’ motivations to work in the project in our social media series “Meet the VIRTIGATION experts” and through their profiles on our website.
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- Read the first instalment of our #countryfocus blog series presenting the situation in VIRTIGATION focus countries, and what is being done to address it. Our first country portrayed is Belgium, the home of our coordinator KU Leuven university. More here
- The VIRTIGATION network is at the heart of the project’s multi-actor approach. Check out our multilingual description here on our website
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Follow VIRTIGATION on its social media channels to stay updated on project progress. Join the VIRTIGATION community as it protects the #planthealth of tomatoes and cucurbits as key fruits and vegetables.
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