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The annual Steering Committee meeting of the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA)-CABI Joint Laboratory for Biosafety and its subcentres reviewed work progress and discussed the strategies forward in international collaboration for a more sustainable agriculture in China and beyond.
China and CABI have been working together for over four decades. In 2008, MARA, the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) and CABI, launched the MARA – CABI Joint Lab for Biosafety, which is being hosted by the Institute of Plant Protection, CAAS (IPPCAAS) in Beijing.
This was later expanded and joined by affiliated Chinese sub-centres in Shandong, Anhui, Yunnan and Inner Mongolia as well as by a European Laboratory at CABI in Switzerland.
Deepen collaboration in research and development
As an annual technical and governance event, a technical advisory group (TAG) of the Joint Labs and subsequently the Steering Committee members met to review progress, plan next year activities and agree on longer-term strategies.
This is aimed to deepen collaboration in research and development in agricultural science and technology that exerts local and global influence, and facilitates capacity building, exchange of experts, and knowledge sharing.
During this year’s meetings in March 2025, a particular focus was put on invasive species management, the promotion of biopesticide and biological control products for large-scale application and technology transfer, pesticide risk reduction, and grassland ecological restoration and carbon sequestration.
The work on low-risk pest management includes, among many others, for example, the green management of the invasive tomato leaf miner, and yellow spined bamboo locust in China and Southeast Asian countries, the potential classical biological control of fall armyworm via parasitoids in Laos and Vietnam, or stink bugs and grassland locusts in China and neighbour countries.
Further, it is recognised that technical knowledge of IPPCAAS in pesticide residue monitoring and risk assessment can help CABI Member Countries such as Kenya and Ghana. This is largely through piloting national pesticide residue monitoring programmes (NPRMP) in prioritized crops, the establishment of operational and certified laboratories for pesticide residue monitoring, and others.
Bridging role of Joint labs
Another major focus is on the bridging role of the Joint labs in scientific and technological innovation, and triangular collaboration, which were emphasised by a number of Steering Committee Members.
Dr Ulrich Kuhlmann, CABI’s Executive Director of Global Operations and Co-Director of the Joint Lab said, “The Joint Lab, European Lab and the Chinese sub-centres continue to play an important bridging role in some major triangular collaboration and South-South co-operation initiatives to tackle a range of transboundary crop pests.
“Collaboration on this scale in terms of research and development, across areas of shared knowledge and expertise, is vital to sustainably manage threats faced by millions of smallholder farmers and protect the fragile ecosystems they live in.”
Mrs Gou Naying, Deputy Director General, International Co-operation Department, MARA, and the newly elected Chair of the Steering Committee said, “Going forward, the China MARA-CABI Joint Lab and sub-centres should strive to deepen collaboration and scale up the impact of the Joint Lab programme, building on the success achieved during the past 3 decades since China’s accession to CABI.
“Among key measures are further strengthening the capacity of the Joint Lab and sub-centres and facilitating collaboration among CABI Member Countries thus contributing to the sustainable agricultural development in China and beyond.”
Professor Sun Tan, Vice President, CAAS said, “I am pleased that, together, we are making great progress through the China MARA-CABI Joint Lab platform and network, which also includes facilitation of agricultural technology transfers between China and other countries under initiatives such as the Chinese Technology Going Global’ programme. We should continue to explore opportunities to fulfil this important objective of the Joint Lab and its sub-centres.”
Further highlights
Further highlights of 2024 are 31 exchange visits involving 118 experts, 11 seminars reaching 688 trainees, a Chinese scientist’s secondment to the European Laboratory, and an annual IPM course for graduate students of CAAS. Moreover, 38 new plant clinics had been established totalling up to 227 clinics and having provided free crop health advice to more than 33,800 farmers as part of the global Plantwise Plus programme.
There was an active involvement of the Joint Lab and sub-centres in some high level conferences including the 3rd International Congress of Biological Control (ICBC3) in Costa Rica in 2024 which was co-organized by CABI and the International Organization for Biological Control (IOBC), in collaboration with the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock of Costa Rica, and the University of Costa Rica.
CAAS, CABI and Guandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences plan to co-organise the 2nd International Conference on Plant Biosafety in Guangzhou, China, in November 2025 which will include the celebration of the 30th anniversary of China’s membership in CABI, celebrating the successful collaboration between China and CABI, particularly through the MARA-CABI Joint Lab and its sub-centres.
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Members of the Steering Committee of the MARA China-CABI Joint lab for Biosafety during their strategic meeting in Beijing, on 26 March 2028.
Additional information
Main image: The annual Steering Committee of the Chinese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA)-CABI Joint Laboratory for Biosafety, held in Beijing, on 26 March 2025.
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