Integrated pest management: Innovations, implementation and impact in EU

Integrated Pest Management is one of the cornerstones of the EU pesticide legislation and viewed as vital for reaching the overall objective of reducing the risk and impact of pesticides. However, the uptake of IPM by EU farmers has been very slow. In this paper the causes for the slow uptake are discussed and examples are provided on EU supported activities intended to overcome the lack of uptake. Finally, the recent initiatives to reduce the use and potential impact of pesticides on human health and the environment are discussed.