Challenges
Before Sera, Koppert Cress faced significant challenges in managing pest outbreaks, including:
- Unpredictable pest activity leading to delayed interventions.
- Overuse of pesticides during large-scale outbreaks, increasing costs and crop stress.
- Lack of insights into how climate conditions influenced pest behaviour.
Solution
- We implemented a climate-based forecasting system to manage pest outbreaks more effectively:
- Climate Analysis: Analysed greenhouse climate data to identify periods conducive to pest proliferation.
- Outbreak Forecasting: Developed predictive models to anticipate pest outbreaks before they occurred.
- Targeted Interventions: Enabled early, precise pesticide applications to prevent large-scale outbreaks.
- Pest Size Mitigation: Reduced the severity and spread of outbreaks through proactive management.
Outcome
- Reduced Intervention Costs: Lowered pesticide costs by 11% through more efficient and targeted applications.
- Improved Pest Control: Minimised outbreak sizes, reducing damage to crops and maintaining greenhouse productivity.
- Sustainable Practices: Decreased pesticide use, promoting healthier crops and a more eco-friendly approach to pest management.
SERA Manager has changed the way we approach IPM. Instead of manually piecing together data, we can now see the complete picture and make decisions based on real-time and historical trends.
Barnabas Berecz, Head Grower at Koppert Cress
Why it matters
With proactive climate-based forecasting, Koppert Cress transformed their pest management strategy, achieving cost savings and a healthier, more sustainable greenhouse environment.
