The general goal of the Working Group is to promote cooperation among scientists, to exchange expertise on biological control against plant diseases caused by plant pathogens and to support the implementation of biological control strategies in agriculture in the West Palaearctic Region and beyond.

The XVII workshop “From single microbes to microbiomes targeting one health” focused on the role of microorganisms that are isolated, selected, characterized and deployed to control plant pathogens going beyond plant health to protect organismal health in a holistic approach. 

A total of 146 contributions were submitted, five were presented as invited talks,
48 as oral presentations, 44 as flash talks and 49 as posters. The contributions were divided in ten sessions.  Application of biocontrol agents, as single strains or in consortia, were presented and discussed in a context of climate change to control emerging and complex plant diseases. The partnership between industry and academia was explored to improve and make more efficient the production and deployment of biocontrol products. Moreover, recent findings were presented about how to explore new sources of biocontrol agents, and the mechanisms that regulate the complex interactions among microbes, plant, and pathogens. Last, a roundtable was organized to discuss how to overcome current bottlenecks in the biocontrol product registration process to avoid unnecessary delays and costs.