15 State of Affairs and Future Directions of

Product Quality Assurance in Europe

K.J.F. Bolckmans

Koppert Biological Systems, PO Box 155, 2650 AD Berkel and Rodenrijs,

The Netherlands

Introduction

Almost 90 different natural enemies are on
the market for greenhouse biocontrol.
About 25 of these natural enemies are
reared in very large numbers by commercial
producers for use in greenhouses. Natural
enemies are produced by about 85 compa-
nies worldwide, of which 25 are based in
Europe. Chapter 1 and Bolckmans (1999)
give an overview of the current biological
control industry.
Beneficial arthropods will only continue
to become a mainstream pest-management
tool when a consistent supply of good-qual-

ity organisms is available and on the condi-

tion that sufficient knowledge and technical

support are provided for the growers for the

proper use of these natural enemies. These

requirements present extreme challenges to

commercial insectaries, who must generate

very large numbers of delicate and short-liv-

ing organisms of consistent quantity and

quality to meet a market demand that can

fluctuate enormously and unpredictably

(Penn et al., 1998).

This chapter describes the current state

of affairs and future directions for product

quality control by European natural-enemy

producers.

© CAB International 2003. Quality Control and Production of Biological Control Agents:
Theory and Testing Procedures (ed. J.C. van Lenteren) 215

Abstract

Beneficial arthropods will only become a mainstream pest-management tool when good-quality organ-
isms are constantly available and when sufficient knowledge and technical support are provided for
farmers for the proper use of these natural enemies. These requirements demand great challenges from
the producers of natural enemies in all phases of production and transport of biocontrol agents. In this
chapter, the history of quality control of biocontrol agents in Europe is sketched and the future of guide-
line development is discussed. Furthermore, it is argued that the biocontrol industry should move from
quality control to quality assurance, because quality assurance looks at product quality from a proactive
viewpoint, while quality control is a retrospective activity that focuses only on the quality of a product
at the end of the production chain. Aspects of quality assurance during production and transport are
described. Finally, the issue of certification of product quality is discussed.