In this research division, researchers on plant diseases, insect pests and nematodes collaborate to develop technologies to reduce production costs to increase profit for farmers, increase added value by protecting biodiversity by reducing environmental impact and pesticide risk. In order to manage multiple serious pests of major greenhouse vegetables, we develop the technologies such as biological control agents, protection materials of natural enemies, materials enhancing performance of natural enemies, and pest repellents. We aim to establish new integrated pest management technologies by means of combining these technologies. In addition, we will develop a decision support system for pest control in the field, based on the outbreak prediction system developed to combat rice blast, rice stripe leaf blight, and rice stink bugs. We aim to transfer technology to the public and private sectors through WAGRI. We will also work on the development of technology for assessing disease potential of fields against soil-borne diseases, such as clubroot of cruciferous plants and foot rot of sweet potato. In these developments, we will cooperate with public research institutes, agrochemical manufacturers, and private companies, and producers through field demonstration tests. By this we contribute to improvement of productivity, conservation of environments, stable supply of food, reduction of labor, and export promotion.
