Lucerne is a beautiful medieval Swiss town, sitting on the edge of Lake Lucerne, the fourth largest lake in Switzerland. Full of famous landmarks such as the Lion Monument, (a giant dying lion carved out of a wall of sandstone rock above a pond) and the reconstructed wooden Chapel Bridge, it has for the last 6 years been home to ABIM, the prime international meeting of the biocontrol industry. On October 24th-26th, this key event was again held at the KKL Culture and Convention Centre.
The exhibition and conference is jointly organised by the International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association (IBMA) and the Research Institute of Organic Agriculture (FiBL). In the six years attendance has grown from 200 to over 500 delegates representing more than 260 companies and organisations from all over the globe, each keen to exchange experiences and obtain information on the latest products and developments in the world biological products market. A full time exhibition runs concurrently with the scientific programme, in which 35 presentations covered the latest developments in biological market development, regulatory affairs and novel products for plant protection. In addition, 8 professional group meetings (available exclusively to IBMA members) provided the opportunity to discuss key issues affecting the industry and to develop co-operative strategies supporting common interests. Perhaps more than many industries, the IBMA demonstrates some very collaborative, cross company activities.
Owen Jones, President of IBMA, commented, “IBMA represents the industry in Europe at the political, research and also the regulatory level to make sure the industry is adequately represented. Here at ABIM, which is the flagship event for the Biopesticide Industry, it is an opportunity for members to network with each other, find new business opportunities and to further their own businesses and the whole sector in general.” Biocontrol companies are still mostly small to medium size enterprises and the ABIM event encourages companies to generating synergies amongst member companies. To facilitate introductions, this year for the first time, a commercial version of speed dating allowed companies to meet each other for the first time in 1 to 1 'partnering' meetings. With each 1:1 meeting lasting no more than 25 minutes, it successfully provided delegates with the opportunity to meet potential customers or suppliers in a series of pre-arranged appointments.
For those involved in biological pest control, Lucerne has become the key meeting place. Whilst the conventional chemical pesticide industry event has moved from Brighton, to Glasgow to London, Lucerne has provided a consistent and increasingly popular international “meeting point” where biocontrol producers, distributors, consultants as well as opinion leaders can meet. ABIM-Lucerne provides an excellent opportunity for organisations to convene meetings and the plenary sessions provide an excellent platform for industry representatives and researchers to present novel products and results from applied R&D activities. This key event continues to go from strength to strength.
The 7th Annual Biocontrol Industry Meeting (ABIM-Lucerne 2012) will be held on October 22th–24th 2012 and the IBMA is again inviting attendees to put the date in their diary.
For more information, copies of presentations and a video showing impressions from the 3 days, visit http://www.abim.ch/
For more information, copies of presentations and a video showing impressions from the 3 days, visit http://www.abim.ch/
