Meeting Report
Blueprint for the future of arthropod rearing and quality assurance
12th Workshop of the IOBC AMRQC Working Group
Vienna, Austria
October 19 - 22, 2010
Joint Meeting in Vienna, Austria of:
IOBC Global Working Group on Arthropod Mass Rearing and Quality Control (AMRQC)
Association of Natural Bio-control Producers (ANBP)
ASTM Subcommittee E35.30 on Natural Multi-Cellular Biological Control Organisms
International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association (IBMA), Invertebrate Biocontrol Agents Group
In cooperation with the Joint FAO/IAEA Division of Nuclear Techniques in Food and AgricultureHosted by:
International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, Austria
The 12th workshop of the IOBC global WG on Arthropod Mass Rearing & Quality Control (AMRQC) was held in Vienna, Austria from 19 to 22 October 2010, under the theme of " Blueprint for the future of arthropod rearing and quality assurance". It was organized as a joint meeting of AMRQC, the Association of Natural Bio-control Producers (ANBP), the International Biocontrol Manufacturers Association (IBMA), and the ASTM Subcommittee E35.30 on Natural Multi-Cellular Biological Control Organisms and ran in cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). The workshop was co-chaired by AMRQC co-convenors Thomas Coudron (USDA-ARS, USA) and Patrick De Clercq (Ghent University, Belgium), and by Andrew Parker (FAO/IAEA, Austria), who acted as the meeting's host.
Some 100 delegates from 29 countries participated in the event. The workshop focused on different issues related to the rearing of entomophagous and phytophagous insects and mites and of entomopathogenic nematodes, and gave attention to the principles and practices of quality assurance. Seven symposia, with 41 oral presentations and 23 posters, addressed the different aspects of arthropod and nematode rearing as it relates to quality assurance:
- The Role of Microbiota in Insect Mass Rearing and Quality Control (chair: Patrick De Clercq, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium)
- Entomopathogenic Nematodes: Producing a High Quality, Effective Product for Expanding the Agricultural Market (chair: Lynn LeBeck, ANBP, Clovis, CA, USA)
- SIT Applications and Other Uses of Irradiation Technology (chair: Andrew Parker, FAO/IAEA, Seibersdorf, Austria)
- Application of New Technology to Mass Insect Rearing and Quality Control (chair: Tom Coudron, USDA-ARS, Columbia, MO, USA)
- New, Novel, Innovative and Emerging Applications of Insect Rearing (chair: Karel Bolckmans, Koppert BV, Berkel en Rodenrijs, The Netherlands)
- New and Future Applications for Mass Rearing Insects and Quality Control (chair: Norman Leppla, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, USA)
- Predatory Mites (chair: Kim Gallagher Horton, Sterling Insectary, Delano, CA, USA)
Papers in these symposia served as a basis for discussion and exchange, with the final aim of improving collaboration among scientists, practitioners and regulators. An important take home message for the meeting was that workers on invertebrate rearing in the field of integrated pest management, biological control, or sterile insect techniques can learn from those who are producing invertebrates for very different purposes, like insects reared for human or animal food, as they face similar challenges.
During the concluding business meeting, a proposal was accepted to change of name of this IOBC Global working group to: "Mass Rearing and Quality Assurance" Working Group. The next workshop of the AMRQC-MRQA group was projected to be in 2013 in Bangalore, India.
For the proceedings of this and previous workshops see Proceedings
For viewing pdf-files of presentations and posters please follow this link:
http://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/Meetings/Announcements.asp?ConfID=38586
Photographs from the 12th AMRQC workshop can be viewed here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/55319931@N08/with/5126282994/
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Announcing a new book on insect rearing
Principles and Procedures for Rearing High Quality Insects
(John C. Schneider, Ed.)
For details see Mississippi State University Insect Rearing Center at
http://www.irc.entomology.msstate.edu/book
