The University of Warwick in the UK is leading a new €6 million European initiative to tackle one of agriculture’s fastest-growing challenges: the increasing threat posed by invasive plant pests and diseases that are spreading through global trade and a changing climate.
The PhytoPRISM project aims to create the first platform capable of coordinating plant health responses across the entire agri-food and forestry value chain, giving authorities new tools to assess, model and optimise pest management strategies before outbreaks spiral out of control.
Researchers warn the initiative is urgently needed as Europe faces accelerating pressure from insects and plant pathogens that threaten agricultural productivity, forest ecosystems and efforts to build more sustainable food systems.
Climate change increasing pest risks
Speaking at a media briefing at the university’s Crop Centre in Wellesbourne, project lead Dr Stephen Parnell said climate change is increasing the UK’s vulnerability to pests and diseases that are already established elsewhere in Europe.
Plant pests are estimated to destroy up to 40% of agricultural yields globally each year, while damaging biodiversity and disrupting international trade.
The problem is growing more acute as warmer temperatures make previously unsuitable regions vulnerable to new pests and pathogens. At the same time, rising international trade continues to create new pathways for their introduction.
“Until now, plant health authorities have had to make critical decisions without ever being able to see the full picture,” said Parnell.
“They can apply individual measures but have no way of knowing how those measures interact, or whether they are getting the best outcome for their investment.”
From reactive pest control to systems-wide management
Researchers argue that current responses often remain fragmented, relying on individual control measures rather than coordinated strategies spanning prevention, detection, containment and long-term management.
PhytoPRISM aims to change that.
The project brings together 15 institutions across eight countries and will develop an open-access decision-support platform that allows plant health authorities to model intervention scenarios across entire production systems.
The platform will be co-designed with regulators, growers, foresters and advisers and tested using six high-profile European quarantine pests before being adapted for more than 60 related threats.
According to the project team, this systems approach could help Europe respond more effectively to emerging pest threats while reducing unnecessary interventions and improving cost-effectiveness.
Protecting sustainability goals
A key theme emerging from the project is the growing tension between Europe’s environmental ambitions and the increasing threat posed by invasive pests.
The continual arrival of new insects and diseases directly undermines efforts to reduce pesticide use, improve biodiversity and create more resilient food systems.
Researchers say that without better forecasting, monitoring and management tools, growers may be forced to rely more heavily on crop protection measures simply to maintain production.
Dr Antonio Vicent, Head of Plant Protection at Spain’s Valencian Institute for Agricultural Research (IVIA) and Chair of the European Food Safety Authority’s Plant Health Panel, said invasive pests pose a particular threat to citrus production and other high-value crops entering Europe through global trade.
He said PhytoPRISM would support science-based risk management throughout the food chain while helping maintain secure international trade.
Similarly, the European and Mediterranean Plant Protection Organization (EPPO) said the project would help national authorities adopt more consistent, scientifically robust pest management approaches across the region.
Part of a wider horticultural resilience strategy
The announcement comes as Warwick researchers demonstrate a broader portfolio of technologies aimed at safeguarding British horticulture against climate pressures, labour shortages and tightening restrictions on agrochemicals.
At the university’s Crop Centre, researchers showcased autonomous orchard technologies, AI-assisted crop management, disease diagnostics, biological pest controls and precision breeding programmes designed to improve resilience to heat, drought, flooding and emerging diseases.
Projects include AI-powered apple-pruning systems, automated pest monitoring, genomic soil diagnostics for onion diseases, bacteriophage-based disease control and research into beneficial microbes that could reduce dependence on synthetic fertilisers.
Collectively, the technologies point towards a future in which growers rely less on broad chemical interventions and more on data-driven, biological and precision-management tools.
